Pak Cricketers Not Snubbed, 55 of 66 Players Had to Be Disappointed: Official

A top Indian official has said that Pakistan should not feel humiliated by the fact that its cricketers were ignored in Indian Premier League auction, for several players from other nations were also overlooked, reported AP.

An anger has been noticed in Pakistan following Tuesday’s IPL3 auction, in which not even one of the 11 Pakistani players received bids from the eight competing IPL franchise.

“The differing needs of the franchises and availability of the players played a large role in whom the teams bid for,” N Srinivasan, owner of the Chennai Super Kings and secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, was quoted as saying.

In protest against the event, effigies of IPL commissioner Lalit Modi were burnt in various cities of Pakistan while speaker of lower house had stopped a parliamentary delegation from travelling to India.

In auction, 66 international players were available for only 11 slots.

“There were 55 cricketers who must have been disappointed with the auction,” Srinivasan was quoted as saying. “I do not think one should look at the nationality of the cricketers at all here.

“The franchisees are paying good money for the team as well as the players. They have the right to pick the players they want. After all, it is their money.

“If you look at the auction, some very good cricketers such as Ramnaresh Sarwan, Brad Haddin and Graeme Swann did not find any takers. Their ability is not in question here. It is just that the franchisees entered the auction with specific needs.”

Sarwan declined that the BCCI or Indian government blocked the non-selection of Pakistan players.

“The BCCI has no role. And the choice of the individual team owners should not be mixed up with government policy,” he said.

“It is possible that some franchisees could have displayed interest in the Pakistani players and then changed their minds according to their needs.”