It's a no-brainer that the Indian Premier League is arguably the world's most celebrated T20 leagues. However, it always has been more about controversies than cricket itself. Back since its inception in 2008, there's been a bounty of hullabaloo. No doubt, cricket being at the heart of the product, it's controversies knowingly or in other respects has helped IPL leverage its profile by leaps & bounds. There are such several controversies that one has lost the track of them.
So here are the following Top 5 IPL controversies of Indian Premier League:
#1. Sri Lankan Players were banned for playing in Chennai
A massive controversy broke out in March 2013 when Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, refused to engage Sri Lankan players in the IPL 2013 matches to be played in Chennai. This step was leading up to the issue of Sri Lankan Tamils which dominates Tamil politics. The surprising factor was that the all so powerful IPL governing council was ready to agree with this decision & a total of 13 Sri Lankan players, including some big names like Mahela Jayawardene & Kumara Sangakkara, were not allowed to play in Chennai due to security concerns.
#2. Wayne Parnell & Rahul Sharma were spotted at 'Rave Party'
Two cricketers (Rahul Sharma and Wayne Parnell) from Pune Warriors, which now is a defunct franchise were hold-up for supposedly consuming drugs at a party in Mumbai in 2012. Both the players, who were found with other celebrities from the TV & Film industry were detained.
However, both of them denied the claims & were pleaded innocence, stating 'they were at the wrong place at the wrong time'. Despite the test results being positive for drug use, no such noticeable action was taken against Rahul Sharma.
#3. Slap Gate
The third spot in our controversy list is the infamous incident 'slap-gate' which involved Harbhajan Singh and Sreesanth in the inaugural season of IPL (2008). This incident, which was seen by the world over, didn't only put IPL in dock but also put the spirit of the game at stake.
#4. Spot Fixing
In IPL 2013, spot-fixing popped up its ugly face when Delhi Police red-handedly caught 3 Indian players (Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila & Ankeet Chavan) and jailed them subsequently for spot-fixing. Further investigation from the Mumbai Police finally led to Gurunath Meiyappan's arrest. He's the alleged owner of CSK.
#5. Shah Rukh Khan's fight at the Wankhede Stadium
It is now a well-remembered controversy from IPL 2012 that featured Shah Rukh Khan. The incident featured a wrangle between SRK and a security personnel at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. It is supposed that he directed abuse at the security staff present on the ground.
Result of which, the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) banned Shah Rukh Khan from stepping in Wankhede Stadium's premises for the next 5 years.
