IPL: 7 Players Who Got Banned In The Tournament

The Indian Premier League (IPL) has indeed sparked a revolution not only in Indian cricket but also in world cricket. The face of limited-overs cricket has undergone a drastic change since IPL came into being as other countries have formed their respective tournaments. The amount of money involved in the extravaganza has changed many cricketers lives and has also fast-tracked them to the national team.

But the other side of IPL also has the potential for controversies – ones that have forced to revisit the idea of too much franchise cricket. The excess and innumerable money involved has opened up the possibility of spot-fixing. Hence, the 13 seasons of IPL held thus far has witnessed a plethora of on-field altercation and off-field controversies that have shaken the cricketing world and resulted in harsh punishments for certain players.

We take a look at seven players who were banned from IPL for peculiar reasons:

Luke Pomersbach:

Australian cricketer, Luke Pomersbach’s alleged assault of a woman belonging to the United States and her fiance, created a massive controversy in the cash-rich league. The incident took place at the Hotel Maurya after the match against the Delhi Daredevils as Luke Pomersbach plied his trade for the Royal Challengers Bangalore.

In response, the batsman was produced at the Delhi Court, where he earned an interim bail but got suspended by the franchise for the rest of the competition. Pomersbach had to surrender his passport; however, the case got settled outside the court and the charges got dropped. After that, the 36-year old played only one more edition of IPL, which was a year later. Recently, it came to light that the 36-year old faces housing problems due to which he lives in a car, facing theft charges in Perth.

Mohammad Asif:

In 2008, Delhi Daredevils pulled off a major coup, getting Mohammad Asif in their ranks. The former Pakistan seamer was one of the best going around, capable of moving the ball in the air and off the pitch. Asif’s new-ball bowling with Glenn McGrath proved to be mighty effective for Delhi. But the right-arm pacer was also embroiled in a controversy.

Mohammad Asif lost his IPL contract and faced with a year-long ban due to a prohibited drug named Nandrolone being found in his urine sample. The 38-year old was also caught at the Dubai airport on his way to Pakistan with 0.24 grams of opium, resulting in his deportation from the country. With the 26/11 attacks bringing Pakistan cricketers’ reign in IPL to an end, 2008 was the only season when Asif played.

Ravindra Jadeja:

Ravindra Jadeja is one of the few players who made his name under Shane Warne as their mentor as the former Australian spinner dubbed him ‘Rockstar’. The then coach and captain Shane Warne took him under his wings in the draft after the U-19 World Cup 2008 and played for Rajasthan Royals, delivering promising performances across facets. However, it came to light that the Saurashtra all-rounder was in talks with other teams for higher pay, something which defied the league’s terms and conditions.

Jadeja also bargained about his fees with not only Rajasthan Royals but also the other teams. And it became a reason why Jadeja couldn’t play in 2010. The spin-bowling all-rounder returned in IPL 2011 to play his trade for the Kochi Tuskers Kerala and played for the Gujarat Lions when Chennai Super Kings stayed banned in 2016 and 2017. Jadeja, who joined Chennai Super Kings in 2012, remains a critical part of the franchise and is one of the best all-rounders globally today.

Pravin Tambe:

Pravin Tambe was the one who genuinely justified the saying ‘age is just a number’, having been picked up by the Rajasthan Royals in 2013 at the age of 42. The leg-spinner also had the goods to back up his inclusion, picking up 15 wickets in 2014 for Rajasthan. Post that; he also picked up 28 and 33 wickets for Gujarat Lions and Sunrisers Hyderabad, respectively.

And even at the age of 48 in 2019, Tambe received a bid from Kolkata Knight Riders for the thirteenth season. However, BCCI prohibited his participation for a strange reason. The veteran made an appearance in the T10 league in 2018 after retiring from the sport. However, he came out of retirement to play in Mumbai T20 league and put his name in the IPL auction.

As per the regulations from the Indian cricket Board, an active cricketer cannot participate in a foreign tournament without having their permission. The BCCI had no knowledge about his withdrawal from his retirement and T10 participation, thereby ruling Tambe out of the competition.

Harbhajan Singh (Slapgate controversy):

While the inaugural IPL season was a grand success, the tournament experienced a tiny black mark when the slapgate episode emerged. It came to light that at the end of the game between Kings XI Punjab and Mumbai Indians as the latter team’s captain slapped KXIP’s pace spearhead Sreesanth. Sreesanth, who took a couple of wickets in a winning effort, was in tears after that.

It emerged that a smiling Sreesanth went up to Harbhajan Singh and said ‘hard luck’. That was when the Mumbai Indians’ captain lost his cool and hit the Kerala speedster under the eye. The off-spinner faced temporary suspension following that incident and later banned for the rest of the season. Harbhajan was also subsequently banned for five ODIs.

Steve Smith:

Australian star batsman Steve Smith would have captained the Rajasthan Royals in 2018 had it not been for his involvement in the ball-tampering scandal. As an Australian captain, he did not stop the illegal activity from happening during the Newlands Test against South Africa in March 2018. The saga turned out to be massive and Cricket Australia did a detailed investigation on it.

Cricket Australia handed Steve Smith a year-long ban from international cricket, due to which the IPL refused to have him as well. They also declared that Smith would be eligible for captaincy a year after his ban ends. Ajinkya Rahane replaced the New South Wales batsman as the Royals’ captain and lifted the franchise to the playoffs; however, Smith retained his spot in the squad in 2019.

David Warner:

David Warner is one of the finest captains in IPL, having led the SunRisers Hyderabad to the title in 2016 and the playoffs in the subsequent season. David Warner is also one of the best openers in the tournament history, but the veteran did not have the luxury to captain the side in 2018 nor play in the cash-rich league. The southpaw, who was revealed to be the mastermind in the ball-tampering saga, bore the same punishment as Steve Smith.

Cricket Australia also announced that the 34-year old would not ever become eligible for Australia captaincy. As a result, Warner could not play for the SunRisers Hyderabad in 2018 and Kane Williamson took charge. And the Kiwi skipper did an outstanding job, lifting the Orange Army to the finals and winning the Orange Cap in the process.

Also Read: Top 10 Cricket Coaches With Highest Salaries In The Year 2021