IPL thrills but kills; Kohli’s injury jeopardizes India’s chances of overseas success

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Only time and honest assessment will tell if the Indian Premier League (IPL), launched with great fanfare by Lalit Modi and company in 2008, has done more good to the Indian cricket in particular and the game of cricket in general or has it inflicted more harm.

11 seasons into the IPL and the damage caused has been phenomenal. 

It has certainly boosted the bank balance of the already cash-rich Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) but this has come at a huge cost. 

India’s performances in the international matches, most notably in Tests, have suffered immensely despite the fact that they are currently ranked number one team in the ICC ratings for the longer version of the game. 

They were already the top ranked Test side when the IPL thing occurred in 2008. They had already won the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007 which resulted in the establishment of the IPL. They were already among the top performing ODI sides, packed with megastars around that time, having won the triangular series in Australia in 2007-08.

Isn’t it ironical to note that since the advent of the IPL, India have not won a single edition of World T20! India’s title triumph in the 2011 World Cup at home was made possible by the players who already were stars in their own right before the IPL had come into being.

So what good has the IPL done in improving India’s performance in international matches across all formats? 

Hasn’t the BCCI done a disservice to have bound all its cricketers for a couple of months to play for cash at the expense of national interest? 

The latest casualty is none other than the indomitable Virat Kohli. 

Although the BCCI had tried to downplay it, the fact of the matter is that the Indian got injured while playing the ongoing edition of the IPL and he has become a doubtful starter for the all-important tour of England starting next month. 

While all his foes and their cronies have struggled to find a way to dislodge Kohli, over the years, the BCCI has done the trick by getting him on verge of being sidelined. 

If Kohli, the Indian captain, misses any part of the upcoming England tour it will be another slap on the face of the BCCI officials who must be tried for having committed a serious offence. 

Since the Supreme Court appointed committee has been looking after Indian cricket of late it has become their responsibility to try those who have played foul and compromised on national interest.

The damage has already been done. Kohli’s county stint, which was aimed at giving him a better chance to acclimatize to the English conditions prior to the challenging tour, has been cancelled with a neck injury suffered during his penultimate IPL on May 17. 

It has been announced officially that Kohli will not be training for the next three weeks with a BCCI press release saying he will only resume on June 15 at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore. 

He will then undergo a fitness test before he flies out for the tour of Ireland and England in late June. India’s chances of succeeding in England will be seriously jeopardized in the prevailing conditions. 

Even if he makes it to the team, he will be out of match practice for long and expecting him to regain the Midas touch right away will be a bit too much.

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Chirayu Amin replaces Lalit Modi as IPL chief

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The Governing Council of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has appointed Chirayu Amin, vice-president, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), as the interim chairman of the league following the suspension of its commissioner Lalit Modi.

Modi, also a vice-president of the BCCI, was suspended on April 26, only hours after the conclusion of the IPL final in Mumbai.

Modi, facing 22 charges ranging from financial irregularities to rigging bids proxy holdings and kickbacks in broadcast deal, was not present in the meeting chaired by BCCI President Shashank Manohar at the Cricket Centre in Wankhede Stadium.

The meeting, lasting close to one and a half hour, was attended by 13 members of the Governing Council of the IPL who unanimously appointed Amin as the interim chairman of the league.

Besides being the vice-president of the BCCI, Amin is the head of Baroda Cricket Association (BCA) and also a member of IPL Governing Council whose other members are Punjab Cricket Association chief Inderjit Singh Bindra, BCCI treasurer M.P. Pandove, vice presidents Amin, Rajeev Shukla, Arjun Jaitley, board secretary N. Srinivasan, joint secretary Sanjay Jagdale, Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association chief Farooq Abdullah, IPL vice-chairman Niranjan Shah and former Indian captains Ravi Shastri, Sunil Gavaskar and Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi.

"My priority is to clean the game and plan for next year's IPL. We have showcaused Modi and will wait for his reply," Amin remarked in his brief statement after taking over the leadership of the IPL.

The high-flying Modi, however, came in for a scathing attack from the BCCI President during the press conference after the meeting.

Manohar said that Modi would be charged on five counts - shady initial bids of Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab, a suspect broadcast deal with Sony, bid rigging of two new franchises this year and his behavioural pattern.

"The charge sheet was discussed and the Committee also appointed Chirayu Amin as the interim chairman. BCCI CAO Ratnakar Shetty will look into all the records," Manohar announced.

"Many documents are missing from the IPL and BCCI offices. Income Tax department has been asking for them but we don't have them. Like the papers of the broadcast deal with Sony are not with us. IT department is asking for these documents but we can't give them because they are not with us," the BCCI chief disclosed.

"With regards to the 2011 IPL, Ravi Shastri, Sunil Gavaskar and M A K Pataudi will decide the modalities of holding three foreign and four Indian players after discussing with the franchises," he added.

Meanwhile the suspended IPL chairman and commissioner, Modi, claimed that he was still the chief, and by tweeting "we have just begun" hinted at a long drawn battle ahead.

He didn't sound perturbed by the charges levelled against him. "Had a restful day. Been in the spa all day. Much needed rest," he wrote.

There are indications that Modi can go in for an appeal to the BCCI to lift his suspension and there is also an intense speculation that he might take legal recourse to challenge the way he was removed.

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Modi to go down fighting

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The high-profile IPL Chairman and Commissioner, Lalit Kumar Modi, is not going down without a fight. He is believed to be set for moving to the Bombay High Court on April 23 to question the legality of the IPL Governing Council meeting on April 26.

Modi has contended that as IPL Chairman only he was entitled convene a meeting of the Governing Council. This came after the BCCI President, Shashank Manohar, had accused Modi of breaching confidentiality.

"Modi violated the confidentiality clause by putting out share holding details on Twitter," the BCCI President was quoted as saying when Modi had tweeted about Union Minister Shashi Tharoor's friend Sunanda Pushkar's sweat equity in the IPL Kochi team.

Sharad Pawar, the Vice-president of the International Cricket Council (ICC), had made the announcement following a meeting with BCCI President that the governing council of the IPL would meet on April 26 to discuss the future of the competition's commissioner, Modi, at the centre of allegations regarding financial irregularities.

"Manohar met me today and he briefed me about the situation. The IPL governing council will take a unanimous decision on Modi's resignation and, thereafter, we will take the required action,” Pawar, who appointed Modi during his time as President of the BCCI, stated.

"The governing council will take the decision in the interest of cricket. Don't forget Mr Modi is also a vice-president of the BCCI and our total approach and past experience is we always take collective and unanimous decisions that everyone is party to, including Lalit Modi," Pawar added.

Modi has come under scrutiny after the IPL's affairs became the subject of a government inquiry amid parliamentary allegations of money-laundering.

The IPL offices were raided by tax officials investigating the allegations. They reportedly spent seven hours questioning IPL staff, including Modi, who has denied any wrongdoing.

Modi had revealed on his Twitter account that the girlfriend of Shashi Tharoor, a junior government minister, had invested in a consortium awarded the new IPL franchise in Kochi. The revelation caused a political storm, and forced Tharoor's resignation.

Modi has issued a statement denying newspaper allegations that he has been charged with betting and laundering. He called the reports "absolutely baseless, ill-founded and motivated" and promised to "initiate appropriate legal action against" a "defamatory and malicious campaign against him by a motivated section of media".

The Income Tax department has been scanning the IPL bid papers and a series of allegations of financial irregularities against Modi with the prospects of a detailed inquiry against him to track the irregularities.

A probe has already been set out with the department examining the data on bids and financial details of various franchisees stored in Modi's office computers. With the ongoing probe not only the IPL financial records would come under scrutiny but also the tax details of BCCI with regard to IPL will come under the scanner.

Modi, credited to have masterminded the launch of the IPL, has also been accused of going overboard in taking many crucial decisions for which he could face the music.

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