In the end, commonsense prevailed. Which is about the only sensible result of what had been yet another madcap suggestion of how India’s first Test against England in Ahmedabad be delayed a day.

It becomes a serious problem, however, when any attempt is made to hijack the start of a Test series that is part of the International Cricket Council’s future tour programme by a ruthless manipulator for the sake of promoting an Indian Premier League event.

Of all the manoeuvres by Board of Control for Cricket in India puppet-master Lalit Modi, this absurd attempt to force a change in the fixture programme to accommodate a T20 circus act explains the current thinking among certain BCCI administration.

Already the BCCI are in violation of media freedom by blocking line scores from their domestic events to promote their own website. And as one veteran Indian colleague asks, if cricket is the number one sport in India, why did only twenty spectators turn up to watch a day’s game of Ranji match between Mumbai and Delhi.

It is a pertinent point and suggests that the marketing system in India is geared in the wrong direction. Instead, administrative and establishment pursue their own agenda and greed and where how the few officials who do care about an area of the game where the skills needed for T20 are developed - the first-class arena.

But to suggest that the first Test be delayed by a day for some IPL Champions League event explains what is driving officials such a Modi.

The England Cricket Board as well as the BCCI had approved the tour schedule and Test dates many months ago and long before Modi’s surly IPL offspring administrative mob tried to poke their fingers in the eye of these agreed arrangements.

And while there were complaints about Ahmedabad as a venue from some tourists, frankly and from personal experience, a week in

Ahmedabad is far more preferable to a day in smelly Kanpur. In fact, Ahmedabad, first visited in 1962 for a wedding of friends met in London, has any number if happy memories.

As it is, the IPL’s Champions League is causing disruption of South Africa’s domestic programme along with the dates of the scheduled second practice match in Adelaide. This has been scrapped because of the dates of the IPL’s games that threatened to hold up the Ahmedabad game.

Already the two-day practice game in Perth between the Proteas and Western Australia is reduced to two days instead of the three, while the Test has been left as scheduled.

However, Proteas coach Mickey Arthur’s complaint that the five-day gap between the first and second Tests are now being spent in the nets as the dates of a practice-game planned for Adelaide had been scrapped.

Some time ago an email suggested that no one had five days to watch a Test and that the limited over circus was ideal. Well, as this goofy guy is in Canada, they don’t play five-day games in Canada anyway and their domestic competitions are all slog events, which should suit him fine.

The point is, and it has to be accepted, that the game is undergoing a metamorphosis and as such, the scramble for available dates outside the FTP is where there are problems. The fault here lies squarely with the administrators and this is where Modi needs to remember what he says and what he does not. One of his comments is that the IPL would not interfere with the game at Test level.

Already IPL contracts with Sri Lanka’s top players have caused problems with Sri Lanka forced to abandon their tour of England next year.

Then the BCCI have the cheek, after agreeing to the dates for the first Test of the series against England to seek a switch so that their captain can play if his side reaches the final of an IPL event. Which is why questions should be asked if this is the way to run a so-called senior international organisation?

Now, if India were touring another country, and in the middle of a series of limited overs (ODI) games asked to agree to a Test date change as some minor tournament had a final it wanted to hold, and there was a chance their captain might be involved, imagine the uproar from the BCCI and the supporters.

As it is, the Champions League issue, which is a money making gimmick, has meant that the South African side Titans, the Centurion-based team, have lost Proteas all-rounder Albie Morkel to the Chennai outfit because he is part of their squad. This was after a battle between officials on both sides of the Indian Ocean.

While the Titans will have the benefit of AB de Villiers, Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn for their Champions League game, imagine if India were put through a similar exercise while on tour. That several of their players had to go and play in a private for TV show to satisfy some so-called administrators explains the chaotic administration running the game.

India’s captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni had to take a rest from the Test series against Sri Lanka earlier this year because he needed a mental break after a tough schedule. It meant India going on tour with the result that an inferior wicketkeeping performance in the first Test against Sri Lanka cost the side with catches dropped.

Dhoni says that the schedule means players will need to take breaks. Is this how the BCCI want to plan their future? They need to take a hard look at what they are attempting. They are treading in an area that needs expertise and common sense, but cluttered formats and schedules. If you don’t have star players, the product suffers and India are in danger of losing the plot of how to regulate sensibly the game to the benefit of all.