IPL 2021: Five Biggest Controversies In IPL History

The IPL has a huge fan base in India and the reason has been the quality of the players on display in the tournament as well as the league serving huge money to the BCCI. The cash-rich league inaugurated in 2008 and has been a great source of entertainment for the fans in India with the two months celebrated like a festival season.

The long tournament has been watched across the globe by sportspersons all over the world and the entertainment factor has never gone in the downward direction. The 2020 IPL had to be conducted without the fans in the stadium in the UAE due to the pandemic and it did turn out to be a success still with record viewership on the television for the Indian premier league.

Five Biggest Controversies In IPL History:

Ravichandran Ashwin Mankads Jos Buttler:

The IPL 2019 perhaps saw the biggest controversy in the history of IPL with Ravichandran Ashwin mankaded Jos Buttler in a league match between Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals. The incident had a great effect on the game as Rajasthan was cruising to victory at one stage and Buttler’s bizarre dismissal turned the game on its head.

Ashwin’s on his follow-through did not complete his action and turned around taking the bails off the stumps when Jos Buttler had moved out of the crease. Ashwin appealed and the umpire adjudged out immediately as it is completely part of the cricket rules. A lot of cricket experts felt that it wasn’t the right way to dismiss a batsman and Ashwin had faced a lot of criticism, however, he was very confident about being inside the rules of the game.

Harbhajan Slaps Sreesanth:

Harbhajan Singh and Sreesanth had played a huge part in the 2007 WorldCup winning campaign and each played different roles in the IPL for their respective franchises. In an early league game between Mumbai Indians and Kings XI Punjab, Harbhajan had slapped Sreesanth before the presentation ceremony.

The incident hit the news immediately as the Indian pacer Sreesanth was seen crying and he was being consoled by his teammates. However, it was revealed that the two were about to shake hands and Sreesanth had said ‘hard luck’ to Harbhajan which had induced the off-spinner to act inappropriately. A lot of investigations went into the matter and Harbhajan had to be banned for the remainder of the 11 games in IPL 2008 by the BCCI.

2013 Spot Fixing :

The 2013 IPL saw three Rajasthan Royals players S Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila, and Ankeet Chavan were arrested by the Delhi Police citing the involvement with bookies and betting-related activities. The three were arrested in a hotel in Mumbai and it was a great disgrace to the game as well as the cash-rich tournament.

Sreesanth was part of the Indian bowling set up at the time and he was the most affected among the lot. All three players was imposed a life ban and did not look like coming back to international cricket. However, Sreesanth’s life ban was lifted in March 2020 and he was part of the Kerala team in the recent Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament and Vijay Hazare tournament.

Shahrukh Khan’ Ban At Wankhede:

Kolkata Knight Riders Co-Owner and Bollywood star, Shahrukh Khan was present in the Wankhede Stadium to encourage his team in the 2012 IPL in an away match against Mumbai Indians and he had stayed late to celebrate his team’s win. It was believed that Shahrukh Khan was entertaining his kids and his friends.

However, the incident turned out ugly once the police interviewed and Shahrukh Khan claimed that he lost it once the police abused the kids. The incident had made Mumbai Cricket Association ban Shahrukh Khan from entering the stadium during his team’s matches for the next five years and the ban was lifted in 2017. A lot of people believed that Shahrukh Khan was drunk during the incident and investigations popped up after the night.

Kohli and Gambhir Clash:

The two batsmen from Delhi who had played a big part in the 2011 Worldcup winning campaign splashed a lot of words against each other during an IPL match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2013 edition. Gambhir being the captain of the side is always animated on the field and he has always never been afraid to take on any player.

Virat Kohli is the same sort of person who wants his voice to be heard and the incident indeed took a toll on both the players. Kohli was caught out on the deep extra cover and Gambhir’s excitement over the wicket did not please Kohli. Both the players charged at each other and had a lot of words exchanged at the moment. The umpire had to intervene and the incident was talked about for a long time.