Curator Daljit Singh has retired a happy man after 22 years of service to Indian cricket. y are longer seen as "maalis"   and are getting due respect, a change that pleases him most. Daljit, a former first-class cricketer, may t be involved in BCCI's pitch committee anymore but it is still difficult to keep him away from 22- yard strip. He continues to he Punjab Cricket Association pitch committee and is overseeing preparations for second T20 International between India and South Africa on Wednesday. It is hot and humid even for players but it doesn't bor Daljit one bit. "I still exercise. I got to if I have to stand under sun," said Daljit who resigned as BCCI's chief curator earlier this month.

Former PCA and BCCI president I S Bindra handpicked him to produce fastest pitch in India at Mohali back in 1993 and in ar four years, Daljit became part of BCCI's first pitch committee in 1997."Needless to say Indian cricket has come a long way including job of a curator. Back in day groundsmen were merely seen as 'maalis' (gardeners) who didn't even get paid but w we have a system in place which produces certified curators (since 2012). "Like umpires, curators are also posted w," he said, referring to BCCI's four-level certification course which groundsmen have to pass to become curators.

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role of a curator

As of w, around 100 BCCI certified curators are working across country. "It is a big number. I leave behind a settled system. credit must go to board also. BCCI in many ways was a trend-setter, it gave us best possible resources to prepare good pitches. likes of Bindra, Jagmohan Dalmiya and Shar Pawar listened to us." job of a curator is a thankless one, especially in India, where intense discussions over nature of pitch are rmal ahe of an international game.  More often than t, pressure is exerted by home side to prepare a pitch of its liking. "You can't say interference, y have ir interests, why t?" asks Daljit. " home team takes interest and re is thing wrong in that. It is like that all over world. curator must realize re is a match referee. If you go overboard, you could get a poor rating. re must be a balance between bat and ball." And he too was accused of going "overboard" in certain cases, most infamously in 2009 game between India and Sri Lanka in Delhi where game was abandoned due to a "dangerous pitch". entire BCCI committee, including Daljit, was sacked following incident. He was later reinstated. "re was an inquiry conducted by ICC and its n curator Andy Atkinson h come to Delhi. He prepared report which stated that BCCI curators were t at fault. DDCA was undergoing revation at that time and I h warned m against lack of time to prepare a suitable pitch but y did t pay heed to it," he recalled.

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Daljit Singh a victim of sharp criticism on many occasions

More recently, in 2017, Daljit received flak for preparing a rank turner for India-Australia Test series opener in Pune where hosts suffered a massive 333-run defeat with match getting over well inside three days. pitch was expectedly rated poor by ICC and it was a rare loss for India at home. Daljit said re is thing wrong in preparing turning tracks and that game was a one-off. "It is fair eugh. y also prepare to ir needs when we travel. Ideally, pitch should seam on day one, helps batting side on day two and three and after that spinners come into play. "Having said that, like you and me, pitches also . It also depends a lot on what time of year you are conducting game, pitch will behave accordingly. This time in rth, Ranji Trophy will be played in December and I expect fast bowlers to have a good time." Having played game for deces before becoming a curator, Daljit always has a bagful of stories to tell. He likes understanding between India captain Virat Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri. " captain runs show and it is best that coaches work behind scenes," said Daljit who extensively worked with Karnataka legends Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid, Sunil Joshi, Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Pras, Dodda Ganesh, and Sujit Somasunder when he was working for a company in Bangalore. " great G R Viswanath spotted me in a market and told me to work with players. y all went on to play for India but when I met m first y were t great athletes. I remember I could beat Anil in a sprint. But through sheer hard work, he rose to top and many or Karnataka players of that era also shone." 

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