IPL: Dalmiya may ban cheerleaders

Sabi Hussain

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Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 12

Banning cheerleaders and after-match parties from the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) could be some of the solutions to cleanse cricket by the newly-elected president of the BCCI, Jagmohan Dalmiya.

Apart from banning the two activities from IPL-8, Dalmiya is also contemplating prohibiting the consumption of liquor at the corporate boxes at some venues during the IPL matches.

These initiatives are part of Dalmiya's plan to restore the credibility of the game in the wake of the IPL spot-fixing scandal which resulted in the suspension of Chennai Super Kings chief Gurunath Meiyappan and Rajasthan Royals co-owner Raj Kundra.

It's no secret that Dalmiya isn't fond of the concept of cheerleaders. In fact, during his term as the interim president of the Board in 2013 after Srinivasan was forced to step aside following the spot-fixing controversy, the 74-year-old Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) chief had mooted the idea of banning cheerleaders to clean up the game. But, his words never translated into action as Srinivasan returned at the BCCI helm and cheerleaders continued to perform on the sidelines during IPL matches. The cheerleaders have been a regular feature at the IPL since the inaugural edition in 2008.

But with Dalmiya returning to the BCCI fold after more than a decade, he has started pursuing the Board members to do away with cheerleaders as cutting down on the entertainment factor wouldn't harm the popularity and commercial success of the cash-rich league.

Dalmiya even discussed these important issues with Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitely on his first visit to the capital on Wednesday after taking over the charge as the BCCI chief. It has been learnt that Jaitely agreed to Dalmiya's suggestions which forms an integral part of his clean-up operation to restore the IPL credibility.