Cricket
Explained: BCCI does not want Herschelle Gibbs to play in KPL – Know Why
Herschelle Gibbs took to his personal Twitter handle and accused BCCI of threatening him with 'ludicrous arguments' about his decision to play KPL.
BCCI threatened Herschelle Gibbs on his decision to play in KPL
The former South African cricketer Herschelle Gibbs and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) are apparently involved in a big spat.
This came to light when Herschelle Gibbs took to his personal Twitter handle and accused BCCI of threatening him with 'ludicrous arguments' like they will not allow him to come to India for any cricket related work if he goes on to play in the Kashmir Premier League (KPL).
Why does BCCI not want Herschelle Gibbs to play in KPL?
The reason is pretty simple. The Kashmir Premier League or the KPL is a tournament that is expected to be organised starting 6th August 2021 and is sanctioned by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
Moreover, the KPL will be held in Muzzafarabad – an area in Pakistan administered Kashmir or Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK).
The political tensions between India and Pakistan due to Kashmir is something everyone knows of. And since the PCB is hosting the KPL with a name and area which India considers to be its own, the Indian government and BCCI are unhappy with the league showing no signs of slowing down.
This has apparently led to BCCI threatening players and forcing them to pull out from the league conducted by the Pakistan Cricket Board.
What did Herschelle Gibbs say?
"Completely unnecessary of BCCI to bring their political agenda with Pakistan into equation and trying to prevent me playing in the KPL. Also threatening me saying they won't allow me entry into India for cricket related work. Ludicrous," Gibbs tweeted.
The South African found support from various quarters, including former Pakistani cricket captain Shahid Afridi and the PCB itself.
"Really disappointing that BCCI is once again mixing cricket and politics! KPL is a league for Kashmir, Pakistan and cricket fans around the world. We will put up a wonderful show and won't be deterred with such behaviour!!" Afridi tweeted.
The PCB, on the other hand, accused the BCCI of breaching 'international norms and the spirit of gentleman's game by interfering in internal affairs of cricket boards.'
What did BCCI say?
The BCCI, on its part, said that it 'cannot confirm or deny' the statements made by Gibbs, and even if it is true they are well within their rights to do so.
Countering the PCB's internal affairs narrative, a BCCI official said, "PCB is coming across as confused. Just the way the decision to not allow players of Pakistani origin to participate in the IPL cannot be construed as interfering in the internal affairs of an ICC member, the decision, if any, to allow or disallow anyone from participating in any manner with cricket within India is purely an internal matter of the BCCI," to ANI.
