5 controversies that rocked cricket in 2016

#3 Harsha Bhogle’s axing from the commentary panel

One of the most recognisable voices in the game, Harsha Bhogle found himself at the receiving end of a googly from the BCCI, when he was ousted from the list of commentators for the IPL 2016. The matter seemed further complicated when Bhogle was not given any reason for his non-inclusion from the roster of commentators.

His fans, huge in number, didn’t take it well, slamming the BCCI for his axing in a tournament he has been a part of since 2008.

People came up with several theories, although Bhogle himself said that he was clueless about the reason for his ouster. He was part of the promotional videos, conducted the auction, and was slated to join the rest of the batch to select venues.

Some reports suggested that the decision was prompted by reactions from celebrities and senior cricketers on the kind of content that was coming out of the Indian commentators during the broadcast of the World T20. Indian actor Amitabh Bachchan had tweeted about how Indian commentators should talk more about their own players, than others, a statement that was seconded by Indian captain MS Dhoni. Bhogle conceded that he was taken aback by the criticism that came out of Bachchan’s tweet, despite the fact the Indian actor had not directly targeted the ever-neutral Bhogle.

Others conjectured that the axing took place after Bhogle had a heated argument with officials at the Nagpur stadium regarding the VIP enclosure that separated the English and Hindi commentary rooms, making it difficult for him, and the rest, to run around the whole day and take a long route back and forth to the two rooms.