NEW DELHI: Rajeev Shukla, the new IPL chairman, is known for his proximity to all the T20 league's franchise owners. So, it did not come as a surprise for the cricket fraternity when BCCI gave him the job of leading the pack of Governing Council (GC) members.
Shukla, who is also the minister of state, parliamentary affairs, knows that his role is important and demanding. He also wants to ensure that IPL is managed without controversies.
Shukla talks about the new challenges and more in this exclusive interview with TOI. Excerpts:
What does IPL's chairmanship mean to you?
It's a challenging task and I have to fulfill the aspirations of millions of cricket fans. I am thankful to the BCCI president N Srinivasan and former BCCI boss Shashank Manohar for showing confidence in my abilities. I know all the owners personally and share a good rapport with them. The team owners are important stakeholders in the league and their views will be given due weightage.
What are your plans for making IPL more interesting?
We have to bring in new elements to make IPL more interesting and capture more eyeballs. But the sanctity of the game is important for us. Cricket is the most important bit in this tournament and we don't want to sacrifice it at any cost. As far as the cheerleaders are concerned, it's the franchisees' call. Some of the franchisees want to add local flavours as well, which they are free to do. Any other suggestions from team owners are always welcome and we will consider them in the GC meeting. But we are against the late night parties. It tires the cricketers. The main thing for the all team owners is to ensure that the players get enough rest and they are fresh for matches.
Will GC ever allow five foreign players in the playing XI instead of four?
So far, we have the system of allowing four foreign players in the playing XI and right now, there is no move to change it. Earlier, some of the teams had demanded more than four in the playing XI, but we have to remember that this is a domestic tournament. Some of the new faces of Indian cricket have come from this tournament. This tournament helps Indian players get noticed.
With Kochi terminated, will IPL now be a nine-team affair?
We will decide once the GC members meet next month. We are OK with any format - nine or 10 teams. But the GC members will have to take a final call on the format.
What will happen to the Kochi players?
The players don't need to worry at all. BCCI is going to take care of their dues if there is any problem. They could be up for auction if need arises. We want to keep IPL away from all controversies. It's the most well-known tournament under a lot of media glare. For me, GC is the decision-making body not a ratifying body. All the issues of the team owners, right holders and cricket lovers will be assessed before taking any call on any decision. There will be a difference of opinion on many issues but my job will be to bring consensus on most.
Injuries to Indian players during the IPL season were linked to their participation in IPL. What is your take on this?
Why blame IPL alone all the time? These cricketers didn't get all the injuries during the IPL. We have said repeatedly that if someone is fatigued or injured, he should immediately contact the board and ask for rest. There is no hard and fast rule that you have to take part in every series. If you are not able to take the load, please take rest. We have enough players for all the slots. Even for IPL, our focus is on injury management. The BCCI will be in touch with all the franchises on the fitness update of all the cricketers who are going to take part in tournament. I will also request all the IPL team owners to put their minds towards the injury management issue. This is one area which needs special attention.
