The BCCI and the IPL franchises seem to be on a warring track after news spread that apex body for cricket in India has snapped ties with the IMG – the sports management company which had managed most part of the first two editions of the Indian Premier League.
The BCCI had earlier cut off the ties with the IMG on the grounds of overcharging the cricket board for the services it had provided them for the first two editions of the IPL. The first version had seen IMG get paid Rs.43 crores, whereas if unofficial figures are to be believed then, the second edition had BCCI pay them Rs.33 crores.
The owners of Mumbai, Kolkata, Jaipur and Delhi have, in turn, shot off letters to the BCCI, claiming that as franchises, they had the right to be consulted before any such move and this could end up diluting the league’s vale and success.
An Indian newspaper reported that the owner of the Mumbai Indians, Mukesh Ambani, said that he was shocked that such a move had been taken by the BCCI without bringing the franchises into confidence, and the stand was reiterated by Shah rukh Khan, who owns the Kolkata Knight Riders. Jaipur, which is co-owned by the Emerging Media and Delhi which was bought by GMR Infrastructure have also expressed their surprise over the development.
Shah rukh Khan, the owner of KKR, said,
“This (the quality of the tournament) is evident in the recent ICC World T20 Championships, which took place in England, the delivery of which was nowhere near the quality of the IPL”
Chennai, which is owned by the secretary of the BCCI, N.Srinivasan, however has remained on the other side of the fence, as Srinivasan has been one of the decision-makers himself. Some within the BCCI circles think that the letter-shooting from the franchises is a move to back Lalit Modi. Modi has been an avid IMG backer and was very peeved at the way the company was sacked as an IPL partner.
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