One of the enduring mysteries of Indian cricket is the fallout between Jagmohan Dalmiya and IS Bindra. They were friends, comrades and associates in cricket administration, and their association was so strong that together they could move mountains - the Cricket World Cup was taken out of England to the subcontinent in 1987, and again in 1996, and the English hegemony in world cricket was torpedoed.

What happened between them thereafter remains in the realm of the unknown. It was Bindra who was influential in bringing Dalmiya down in the BCCI. The power of Dalmiya and Kolkata, like England and Lord's in world cricket, were neutralised by a coalition mobilised by Bindra under the leadership of Sharad Pawar. The Indian cricket headquarters, permanently and for all practical purposes, shifted from Eden Gardens to South Bombay.

Quiz any old-timer of the BCCI about these friends-turned-foes and there would only be guesses, no concrete answers. The story goes that Bindra wanted to be the ICC president, but Dalmiya maneuvered his way to the top. But it was not as simple as it appears.

Initially, Bindra, who was the president of the BCCI (from 1993 to 96), was disinterested in the job and Dalmiya mobilised the associate members of the ICC to vote for him. Those were the days when the ICC would not pay associate members for attending the Annual Conference, and Dalmiya got some 30,000 pounds sanctioned by the BCCI AGM so that the visits of the associate members to London could be bankrolled.

Dalmiya went on to win the election, but the announcement of the result was blocked by the dubious veto power of Australia and England, who suggested Bindra's name for the post. It was the typically notorious masterstroke by the British and its ingrained divide-and-rule policy. It managed to break the friendship of the two stalwarts of Indian cricket who, together, had changed the axis of world cricket with their administrative acumen, marketing skills and vision for the subcontinent unity. Dalmiya, of course, ascended the ICC throne in 1996.

The shift started in 1987

In 1987, for the first time, the World Cup was taken out of England and brought to the subcontinent, and Bindra's efforts cannot be overstated. As usual, England and Australia were doubtful that a collaboration between India and Pakistan - arch-rivals in other fields having fought three wars already - could host the World Cup jointly. Bindra, it is said, convinced Zia-ul-Haq, the leader of Pakistan to visit India, for what was then called cricket diplomacy. That high profile visit to Jaipur convinced the Doubting Thomases of the West that an India-Pakistan joint venture was, after all, possible.

"Mr Bindra played a key role in the 1987 World Cup coming to the sub-continent. He was instrumental in persuading Zia-ul-Haq to visit India. At the time, India, England and Australia were worried about the rising tension between India and Pakistan, but Zia's visit helped them realise that cricket is separate from politics and the two countries can host the tournament," recalls Ehsan Mani, the former head of Pakistan cricket and an active global administrator of the era.

Bindra, of course, was a strong advocate of India-Pakistan cricket. "A man with great knowledge of the game, he always understood the bigger picture," says Mani. "Together, we came up with the Sahara Cup Friendship Series in Canada, with Mr Bindra as the architect of that initiative."

The crowning achievement of Bindra, of course, was getting the 1996 World Cup allotted to India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The ICC was still under the control of England and Australia. South Africa, who owed their return to cricket mainstream to India, were only recently rolled out the red carpet in India with a lot of fanfare. But South Africa, under Ali Bacher, had sided with the traditional power centres making things difficult for the sub-continent boards.

Those were the times when the ICC had not yet started bundling and selling the World Cup rights. It followed the policy of giving the host country the right to market the broadcasting rights and take a minimum guarantee (MG) from them. The ICC wanted an MG of about $ 3 million before the World Cup could be awarded to the three Asian countries. It was huge money in those days but the Bindra-Dalmiya-Mani combine managed to raise the funds even before a broadcaster was on board.

"I was the youngest member of PILCOM (Pakistan India Lanka Organising Committee), and working with him was a lesson in cricket administration," says Amrit Mathur, recalling the days of PILCOM. Apart from Mathur, Dalmiya, Bindra and Madhavrao Scindia were the four members of PILCOM from the Indian side. "Eventually, Mark Mascarenhas and WorldTel came on board."

As if the fight to win the World Cup hosting rights was not enough, there was another problem - some countries did not want to travel to Sri Lanka. "When Australia and the West Indies refused to travel to Sri Lanka, Bindra took a hard stand and points were awarded to the opponents," Mani remembers. Bindra then organised an India-Pakistan joint team, which visited Sri Lanka to play a friendly match against the hosts.

BCCI's fight for its rights

The modern-day riches of the BCCI are due to the efforts of Bindra, who fought for the board's right to sell its media rights. "BCCI will always be indebted to him for the fight against the government, which led to the Supreme Court order that the cricket matches played in India are the property of the BCCI, and Prasar Bharati has to bid like any other media rights body for the telecast rights," says Prof Ratnakar Shetty, the former CAO of the BCCI.

Bindra was also sharp at record-keeping, and according to Shetty, he handled the entire documentation for the 2011 World Cup, hosted by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Even the BCCI vision paper, written after the 2005 BCCI election won by Pawar, was authored by him. For the first time, he had recommended that the Ranji champions be paid Rs 1 crore in prize money.

The principled administrator that he was, he could not cope with the changing dynamics of the BCCI politics and at one stage, there were efforts to marginalise him, and even to suspend him. Around the year 2000, he once spoke of corruption in cricket on a television channel and it irked some in the BCCI, who wanted action taken against him for bringing disrepute to the board.

His biggest contribution yet was the launch of the IPL, one of the biggest cash cows of Indian cricket, which made the BCCI one of the richest sporting bodies in the world. Lalit Modi, the founder of the IPL, has never shied away from acknowledging Bindra's role in the league becoming a reality.

"He is the man who made the IPL possible. He took me to the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) and stood by me throughout. He was my godfather. It's a sad day for the game, but I am happy he passed away peacefully," Modi says, paying tribute to his mentor. Bindra's closeness to Modi, however, did not go down well with some within the BCCI, leading to repeated attempts to sideline him.

He was also a long-serving president of the PCA (1978-2014), "where his commitment to infrastructure development and grassroots growth left a legacy that continues to shape the game in the state." In recognition of his lasting contribution, the PCA Stadium in Mohali was renamed the IS Bindra Stadium in 2015 in his honour.

Bindra's legacy in Indian cricket, of course, extends far beyond the Mohali Stadium.