Rot, Reform, and the Rare Idealist
In my ongoing conversations with those who once brought pride to the Hyderabad Ranji team, I met a man whose story is both inspiring and maddening, for what it says about personal integrity and the institutional rot that now surrounds it.
Meet Rayapeth Arjun Swaroop, a forgotten gem of Indian first-class cricket. An all-rounder with heart and spine, Swaroop waited patiently for his Ranji debut, benched for 25 games without complaint. Why? “Because I was proud to be in the squad with legends like Abdul Azeem and others,” he says. That mindset alone sets him apart in today’s entitlement-driven cricket culture.
He captained the Hyderabad Public School team, which included a young off-spinner named Satya Nadella, and went on to lead both Nizam College and Osmania University. He pursued a BA in Mathematics and a postgraduate degree in Applied Statistics, balancing sports and academics with uncommon discipline.
He played for Hyderabad and Baroda, turned out for South and West Zone, and even represented the Board President’s XI. Across 69 first-class games, he amassed 3,475 runs at 35.45 and took 132 wickets at under 30 — a record many modern players would envy.
Today, Swaroop works with the IL&FS Group. But cricket never left him, and his brutally honest views on Hyderabad cricket today deserve to be heard.
Also read: https://orangenews9.com/how-to-revive-hyderabad-cricket-part-ix/
“Most Corrupt Cricket Body I’ve Seen”
“I’ve never seen a state association as corrupt as the HCA,” he says flatly. “The decline began years ago, but we briefly revived hope when Jyothi Prasad (Chairman) and I, along with another selector, oversaw transparent selections. That was the 2016–17 season when Hyderabad reached the knockouts. I’m proud we spotted Siraj back then — before the world noticed him.”
What destroyed that momentum? “Two things,” Swaroop says. “First, academies run by mediocre players started pushing their own students into the system. Second, the obsession with three-day league performances — pushed aggressively by the administrators — became a convenient excuse to ignore raw, deserving talent who couldn’t afford to play those leagues.” Administrators having no respect for processes and systems prescribed in the constitution sets up a trend like a contagious virus, destroying HCA.
The economics of access, he says, is rigged: “Can a poor kid pay ₹10,000 a month for coaching? Cricket has become a pay-to-play racket, and HCA is doing nothing to create grassroots facilities. Why should academies call the shots? It’s the association’s job to scout, support, and sponsor real talent.” Set up at least 10 free permanent coaching centres.
Also read: https://orangenews9.com/how-to-revive-hyderabad-cricket-part-viii/
A Rotten Applecart
Swaroop doesn’t mince words about cricketers-turned-administrators either. “What if a player-turned-official becomes greedy and starts compromising selection for cash? Many do. And no, being a good cricketer doesn’t make one a good administrator. The stakeholders should elect the HCA APEX body based on their integrity and commitment to uplift Hyderabad cricket.
He believes the core of the problem is moral decay. “Today’s HCA is full of opportunists. Even if one honest man makes it in, he’ll be sidelined. How can one good apple freshen up a basket of rot?”
Where Are the Watchdogs?
Swaroop raises a damning question: Why is the state machinery silent?
“Why aren’t anti-corruption agencies probing this mess seriously? Cases are pending against HCA officials before various agencies. Timely action would’ve and will send a strong message to those who turned clubs into cash cows.”
He points out that many club owners — often “not so financially stable” with no interest in cricket — run them purely for political clout and money. “These people compromise merit at every level. They’re ruining the game. Yet, enforcement agencies look the other way.”
On Club Politics and Cronyism
Swaroop is clear that not all club owners are villains. He cites some members who own a couple of clubs, who never interfere with merit-based selection. “Let’s not paint everyone with the same brush,” he says. “But yes — crackdown on clubs that operate like businesses. Punish a few, and you’ll see the system clean up overnight.”
Also read: https://orangenews9.com/how-to-revive-hyderabad-cricket-vii/
Final Word: Reform or Forget Glory
Swaroop sees little hope unless radical reform is enforced. “We need a hybrid of honest ex-players and upright administrators. Integrity matters more than CVs. But as it stands, there’s no will — neither within HCA nor in the corridors of power.”
His words hang heavy in the air: “Even one clean apple can’t save a rotten basket.”
Unless the State steps in with legal action, structural reform, and grassroots investment, Hyderabad cricket may continue to sink, not for lack of talent, but for the sheer weight of corruption dragging it down.
