The league of controversy

The arrest of three Rajasthan Royals players on May 16 has opened a can of worms

May 26, 2013 00:03 IST

The IPL-6 officially ends today, but the scandal it has stirred up is just getting murkier. We reflect on this season of the game & its downward trajectory

The Shame

The arrest of three Rajasthan Royals players on May 16 has opened a can of worms

Ajit Chandila

Rajasthan vs Pune, May 5: The deal with off-spinner Ajit Chandila was to concede 14 or more runs in his second over. He was supposed to untuck his jersey as a signal to bookies so they could place bets. Chandila accepted R20 lakh in advance for this. On the field, Chandila either bowled too short or too full to Pune Warriors players Robin Uthappa and Aaron Finch, and gave exactly 14 runs. However, he forgot to give a signal to the bookies because of which they did not place any bets. Following his arrest, R20 lakh was recovered from his aunt?s house in Palwal.

S Sreesanth

Rajasthan vs Punjab, May 9: The medium-pacer from Kerala agreed to concede 14 runs in his second over. To signal the bookies, he was to tuck his towel in his pants before beginning the over. On the field, he tucked his towel, took time to warm up, allegedly to give bookies a chance to place bets. He gave 13 runs in this over, while in the earlier one, he gave just five. He bought a mobile phone and designer clothes worth R1.95 lakh with the money.

Ankeet Chavan

Rajasthan vs Mumbai, May 15: The left-arm spinner was allegedly coaxed by Chandila to agree to give 14 runs or more in his second over. He agreed to signal bookies by rotating his wrist. On the field, Chavan gave 15 runs to openers Glen Maxwell and Aditya Tare in what was the third over of the Mumbai innings. He conceded just two runs in his first over.

BCCI

Chennai Super Kings owner and BCCI chief

N Srinivasan?s son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan arrested for placing ?huge bets? on IPL matches and even divulging team strategy to bookies. He was named in the scandal by actor Vindoo Dara Singh, who claims he placed bets on Meiayappan?s behalf. Amid the clamour for his resignation, BCCI president Srinivasan remains defiant, rejecting demands for his resignation. However, moves are said to be afoot within the BCCI to oust him in case he does not resign. Sources say some board officials are planning to initiate the process to oust him by at least getting him suspended.

Bollywood

Actor Dara Singh?s 49-year-old son Vindoo Dara Singh, also an actor, held for betting.

Underworld

Police investigations confirm the main kingpin of the racket to be Dubai-based bookie Sunil Dubai, alias Sunil Abhaychandani, along with close associate Suresh Nagri, alias Junior Kolkata. Both Dubai and Nagri were in touch with at least 10-12 bookies in Lahore and Karachi working for Anis Ibrahim and Chhota Shakeel. Former Ranji player Baburao Yadav also held under suspicion of being a bookie and a crucial link in the betting syndicate.

Umpires

Pakistani umpire Asad Rauf?s name has also cropped up in the spot-fixing scandal, prompting the International Cricket Council to remove him from next month?s Champions Trophy in England and Wales.

Corporates

Amid rumours of title sponsor PepsiCo thinking of ending its association with the IPL, fearing negative branding because of being linked with a tainted league, a Pepsi spokesperson on Thursday denied any such rumours. Earlier, the Sahara group, owner of Pune Warriors, pulled out of the IPL, alleging unprofessionalism.

The glory

Amid the darkness of this season, there was glitter too. Some

pleasantly unforgettable moments of the sixth edition of the IPL

Centurion David Miller

The third-fastest century in the IPL was a result of South African David Miller?s bat talking an unbeaten 101 off 38 balls for Kings XI Punjab against Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Tornado Chris Gayle

IPL-6 saw the fastest-ever knock of 175 in 66 balls by Caribbean star Chris Gayle, playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Pune Warriors. In the sixth edition of the IPL, Gayle scored 708 runs with a strike rate of 156.29.

Captains Rahul Dravid & Rohit Sharma

Leading from the front, Rahul Dravid has taken Rajasthan Royals to the playoffs. Rohit Sharma bloomed when asked to replace Ricky Ponting, and did not buckle under the pressure of leading senior players like Sachin Tendulkar, Harbhajan Singh, Dinesh Kartik, etc.

Hat-trickster Amit Mishra

Leg-spinner Amit Mishra became the only bowler in IPL?s history to claim three hat-tricks, helping Sunrisers Hyderabad book a place in the playoffs. He has also played a few crucial knocks with the bat for Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Striker Keiron Pollard

Keiron Pollard took this year?s IPL by storm with 360 runs in 17 innings. His blistering knock of 66 off 27 balls at a strike rate of 244.44 against Sunrisers Hyderabad is the highest by a Mumbai batsman. He is the third leading six-hitter this IPL.

The business

* SET Max, Sony Six

Official broadcaster

* $3.03bn Valuation

($2.92 bn in2012)

Source: Brand Finance

* 12 Number of on-air sponsors

(5 in 2012)

* 2.9TRP (first 60 matches)

(3.4 in 2012)

* 80+Number of spot buyers

(70+ in 2012)