'IPL Auction is undignified and cruel': New Zealand players body launches scathing attack on cash-rich league

The New Zealand Cricket Players Association (NZCPA) has said that the Indian Premier League (IPL) player auction is deeply humiliating for players.

"I think the whole system is archaic and deeply humiliating for players, who are paraded like cattle for all the world to see," ESPNcricinfo quoted Heath Mills, chief executive of NZCPA as saying.

Mills reflected that players act as mere commodities for IPL franchises as the formers' destiny is in the hands of the latter.

"The players enter the auction not knowing where they are going, who their team-mates are going be, who's managing them, who the owners are -- no other sports league in the world engages players on that basis," Mills said.

Peter Clinton, a former chief executive of Wellington Cricket had earlier also called the IPL player auction 'ridiculous'.

He tweeted, "The IPL Auction is such an undignified, cruel & unnecessary employment practice. Ridiculous that it exists today, belongs in the medieval ages."

Here's his tweet

The #IPLAuction is such an undignified, cruel & unnecessary employment practice. Ridiculous that it exists today, belongs in the medieval ages.

— Peter Clinton (@PeterClinton5) January 29, 2018

In the recently concluded two-day player auction up to 578 players, out of the 1,122 players, went under hammer. The franchises had Rupees 80 crore to buy and retain players and the IPL made it mandatory that teams had to spend a minimum 75% of their purse.

Meanwhile, the Bombay High Court on Tuesday said the IPL has made people familiar with phrases like "betting and fixing" and in view of the alleged violations of foreign exchange rules it was time to see if the tournament was in interest of the game of cricket.

The scathing remarks were made by a division bench of justices S C Dharmadhikari and Bharati Dangre while passing its order on a petition filed by former Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman Lalit Modi challenging a July 2015 order of the adjudicating authority of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) refusing him the permission to cross-examine witnesses in a FEMA case.

The ED has alleged violations of foreign exchange rules during the 2009 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) held in South Africa. The court allowed Modi's petition and permitted his legal counsels to cross-examine the witnesses but made strong observations on the tournament.

"If IPL has led to serious violations then it is high time the organisers realise whether what has been achieved by conducting the tournament since the past ten years can be termed as a sport or game...for it is full of illegalities and breaches of law," the court said.

"IPL has made us familiar with phrases like betting and fixing of matches. It is for the central government, RBI and organisers to now consider if conducting IPL is in interest of the game/sport," the court said in its order.

The bench while allowing Modi's petition said the impugned order grossly violates the principles of natural justice as the adjudicating authority was going to rely on the statements of the witnesses against Modi. The court also noted that the proceedings have been dragged for too long now.

"We direct the adjudicating authority to issue summons to the witnesses to appear before it on March 2. The cross- examination shall be concluded positively by March 13. The proceedings shall be completed by May 31," the court directed.

In 2013, the ED initiated adjudication proceedings against Modi under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) regarding a bank account opened by the BCCI and IPL authorities in South Africa ahead of the 2009 edition of the IPL.

(Inputs from ANI and PTI)