‘BCCI cannot allow Indian players to feature in foreign leagues’ - Rajeev Shukla

Rajeev Shukla, the BCCI president, has made it clear that Indian players cannot be allowed to participate in foreign T20 leagues.
 
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“We do not facilitate our players to any cricket leagues abroad.”

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) cannot allow any Indian player to be associated with overseas T20 leagues, as stated by the board President Rajeev Shukla on Wednesday, August 17.

“We do not facilitate our players to any cricket leagues abroad. We have a simple policy regarding this. Our Indian Premier League (IPL) is itself a massive league so we cannot allow any of our players to attach themselves to any foreign league in any manner," Shukla said in an interview with ANI on Wednesday, August 17.

Cricket South Africa and the Emirates Cricket Board (UAE) have introduced new franchise-based T20I leagues - the CSA T20 League and ILT20 respectively - which will host their first editions concurrently in early 2023.

With the top IPL franchises like Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals and Kolkata Knight Riders buying teams across these two leagues, there remained questions whether or not Indian players would be allowed to participate in these overseas competitions. However, the BCCI has been firm on its stance, given the exclusivity of the IPL, and the fact that it remains the most followed T20 league across the globe.

Shukla’s comments came after reports had surfaced that MS Dhoni, the former India captain and four-time IPL winning skipper for the Chennai Super Kings, would mentor Johannesburg Super Kings, a team owned by the CSK franchise. The team head-coach Stephen Fleming and former South Africa skipper Faf du Plessis, who represented CSK between 2011 and 2021, before moving to the Royal Challengers Bangalore, have already been roped in by the Johannesberg franchise.

The BCCI has remained firm on its stance of not allowing its players to participate in overseas T20 leagues. Pravin Tambe, who  played for the Trinbago Knight Riders in the Caribbean Premier League and the T10 league without acquiring a No Objection Certificate from the BCCI, was disqualified by the IPL governing body to take part in the IPL.

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