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'If They Pull Out..,' Gavaskar Demands Pay Cut For Foreign Players Leaving IPL For National Duty

Gavaskar demands pay cut for players leaving IPL midway [X]Gavaskar demands pay cut for players leaving IPL midway [X]

Former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar criticised foreign players leaving the IPL midway to fulfil national duties, calling for pay cuts for the players and the cricket board in such instances.

Just a week after the conclusion of the IPL 2024 season, the 2024 T20 World Cup will go on floors in the United States of America from June 1.

Meanwhile, the England Cricket Board (ECB) released the English squad for the upcoming tournament and interestingly recalled all the IPL-bound players early on May 22 for the Pakistan series. 

This decision didn't sit well with former Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar, who called out ECB in his latest column on the Mid-day.

Gavaskar wrote that while he respects players prioritising national duties, they cannot leave a franchise in the lurch midway, which, in fact, spent a huge amount of money to acquire their services in the first place.

“I am all for players choosing country before anything else but having assured various franchises about their availability for the full season, if they pull out now, it will be letting down the franchises which probably pay them more money in one IPL season which they don’t earn in a few seasons with their country,” Gavaskar said.

The former cricketer opined that any foreign player who dumps his IPL franchise midway must be penalised with a pay cut, and the board that forces them out in the first place should also be penalised.

“The franchises should not only be allowed to deduct a substantial amount from the fee that the player was bought for, but also not give the Board, to which the player belongs, the stated 10 per cent commission of the fee that each player gets," he added.

Gavaskar revealed that IPL is the only franchise league in the world that pays a 10 per cent commission to several cricket boards to buy the services of their contracted players.

“If the Board has gone back on its assurance they need to be penalised too. By the way, this 10 per cent commission to the Boards happens only in the IPL and nowhere else. Does the BCCI get any thanks for its generosity? Ha ha ha. No way," he concluded.

However, instead of gratitude, the apex body backstabs during the playoffs, which is not right in Gavaskar's eyes.