IPL 8: Kolkata Knight Riders may pull out of cash-rich tournament over Sunil Narine
Mumbai: Controversy doesn’t seem to escape cricket. After it showed its ugly face at cricket’s grandest stage – the recently concluded ICC Cricket World Cup in Australia, controversy seems to be creeping into the cash rich Indian Premier League, that’s just nine days away.
According a report that appeared in the Times Of India, West Indies off-spinner Sunil Narine, who was banned for ‘chucking’ but later was cleared to play, has become quite the talk between the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the Kolkata Knight Riders.
The Kolkata franchise have reportedly threatened to pull out of the cash-rich IPL Season 8 if Narine is not allowed to play. Apparently, the BCCI has refused to accept the ICC's clearance to Narine, insisting on another round of tests in Chennai.
Narine was banned for his suspect action during the 2014 Champions League Twenty20 and he could not feature in the playing XI against the Chennai Super Kings, a match which KKR lost by eight wickets.
Narine was also not picked for the West Indies tour to India in November and he opted out of the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup. After modifying his action, he got a clearance from the ICC during his biomechanical test in Loughborough.
In Narine's case however, the ICC did not organise the test as he was not called during an international match. He was called during the Champions League Twenty20, a tournament that is run by the BCCI.
According to the rules in the BCCI, since he was called for a second time, he was banned from bowling in any BCCI-organised tournament. The report alleging KKR's tensions with BCCI also claims that the KKR team management feels that there is no need for a second test and that Narine is being targeted. They have reportedly meet BCCI chief Jagmohan Dalmiya and also said they would not force Narine to undergo testing.
KKR chief executive officer Venky Mysore has reportedly refused to confirm or deny the reports about his team speaking to Dalmiya. In another development, KKR have picked Johan Botha and Azhar Mahmood as replacements for Chris Lynn and Jimmy Neesham. Neesham will miss the IPL due to a stress fracture in his back while Lynn is in doubt due to a hamstring injury.
The eighth season of the IPL kicks off on April 8 when defending champions KKR clash with Mumbai Indians at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
