Photo Credit: Instagram Photo of @lalitkmodi
Days after the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) mega auction in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, a controversy emerged as former IPL Chairman Lalit Modi made explosive allegations about auction rigging and controversies within the league’s history.
The auction, held at the Abadi Al Johar Arena, saw ten franchises spending a total of ₹639.15 crore to acquire 182 players, including 62 overseas cricketers, from a pool of 283 players over two days.
Modi accused former BCCI President and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) owner N. Srinivasan of influencing player selections during his tenure. He alleged that Srinivasan requested him to release Sri Lankan all-rounder Thisara Perera to make room for England’s Andrew Flintoff.
“Pick out everything, auction rigging. I gave Flintoff to Srinivasan. No doubts about it; every team knew about it. Srinivasan wasn’t going to let the IPL happen. He was a thorn in our Board. Yes, we told everybody not to pick ‘Flintoff.’ Yes, that I did—because Srinivasan said he wanted it,” Modi was quoted as saying by OneCricket.
He also claimed that despite the IPL’s success, Srinivasan was initially against the league but shifted his stance when it gained popularity.
“He didn’t like the IPL and he didn’t think it would work, but then it started to work. When everybody started going back-to-back, he was also a member of the board. He was a big adversary of mine,” Modi stated.
Modi further alleged that Srinivasan manipulated umpire appointments to benefit the CSK franchise.
“I went up against him, and he did many things. Umpire fixing, he accused me of it, and I accused him right back. He would change the umpire. At first, I didn’t think much about it. But when I realized he was putting a Chennai umpire on a Chennai game, it became an issue for me. That’s called indirect fixing. When I started exposing those things, he went totally against me,” Modi explained.
These allegations bring renewed attention to the darker chapters of IPL history. Notably, the Chennai Super Kings faced a two-year suspension starting in July 2015 due to Srinivasan’s involvement in the 2013 IPL betting scandal. CSK eventually returned to the IPL in 2018 and secured the championship in their comeback season.
Remaining Funds with IPL Franchises Post-Auction:
- Delhi Capitals: ₹20 lakh
- Gujarat Titans: ₹15 lakh
- Lucknow Super Giants: ₹10 lakh
- Punjab Kings: ₹35 lakh
- Royal Challengers Bangalore: ₹75 lakh
- Chennai Super Kings: ₹5 lakh
- Kolkata Knight Riders: ₹5 lakh
- Sunrisers Hyderabad: ₹20 lakh
- Mumbai Indians: ₹20 lakh
- Rajasthan Royals: ₹30 lakh
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Stay ahead of the latest cricket industry trends by subscribing to our free cricexec “daily briefing” newsletter.
Name of Author: Cricexec Staff
