Ramiz Raja questions MS Dhoni's salary, gets blasted on Twitter by Indian fans
After MS Dhoni came under heavy criticism for his slow paced innings in India’s 4th ODI loss to the West Indies, former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja has now questioned the former Indian captain about his salary.
Raja, who currently works as a TV commentator said that A Grade contracts should be given to players only eligible to play Test cricket, in order to protect the value of the longest format.
“You have to acknowledge and respect the status of Test match cricket and it has to come from the cricket boards, in Asia specifically,” Raja was quoted saying by the Indian Express.
To support his statement, he pointed out at former India captain MS Dhoni’s A Grade contract.
“For example, MS Dhoni retired from Test cricket yet got the A-grade contract from the BCCI, Shahid Afridi retired from Test cricket yet got the A-grade contract from PCB,” he said.
However, this statement from Ramiz Raja did not go down very well with Indian fans who trolled him on Twitter:
@iramizraja why you interfer in @BCCI grade contract ? @msdhoni is legend in India. He deserves A grade contract.
— Shah Raj (@Raj0725_shah) July 5, 2017
@iramizraja you have no right to question d pay contract of MSD. Kindly mind your own Business and care about ur commentary fee
— bigb (@Nik_2109) July 5, 2017
@iramizraja who the hell are u questioning about MSD's A contract...don't repeat it.. celebrate Pakistan icc CT win until 2060😂😂
— Smriti Mandhana FC (@FcMandhana) July 5, 2017
Nowadays it's so easy 2 gain publicity Just comment anythin rubbish abt @msdhoni & it's done.Shut up @iramizraja 2 keep up respect #MSDhoni
— Arihant Agrawal (@arihant595) July 5, 2017
Well @iramizraja ko @BCCI dwara @msdhoni ko A grade contract dene ko lekar tension lene ki koi jarurat nahi, veh @TheRealPCB par dhyaan dein
— Ajay Sharma (@ajayhindustani7) July 6, 2017
@iramizraja first you takecare of your @TheRealPCB then you can question our @BCCI ..and ms .illiterate ..i really doubt u as commentator
— krishna (@krishna0765) July 6, 2017
@iramizraja please bother about Pakistan cricket. Now i know y Pakistan cricket is behind. Seniors r bothered about other cricketers
— Nishant (@Nishant88714020) July 6, 2017
Mr Ramiz Raja,
— Kaveri (@spartan8188) July 6, 2017
It's Dhoni and his team who made your Cricket team cry all these years. And now Virat has taken over the baton.
maybe @iramizraja is right, @msdhoni does not deserve grade A contract, instead @BCCI should add some new category like A+ and give to dhoni
— gokul sai (@gokulpagadala45) July 5, 2017
Ramiz Raja said that Grade A contracts should particularly be awarded to Test players so as to protect the longest format of the game.
“It is under a lot of stress in Asia but if we have a properly planned Test match championship, that’s the way out of this, otherwise we will be struggling to put aside as much money as is available for the T20 leagues,” said the former Pakistan skipper.
Ramiz Raja has also suggested that there should be a two-month window only for Test matches to increase the popularity of Test cricket and also requested the International Cricket Council (ICC) for the same.
While crowds for Tests in countries such as England remain strong, Raja, a member of the influential MCC World Cricket Committee fears interest in Asia is "dwindling" due to the rise of glamorous and cash-rich T20 competitions such as the Indian Premier League (IPL).
