The IPL is the richest league in the world.
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Former England all-rounder Ian Botham has called the Indian Premier League too powerful and feels that the world’s biggest cricket competition “shouldn’t be there”.
“I’m worried about the IPL – in fact, I fear it shouldn’t be there at all,” the 58-year-old said.
The former England all-rounder feels that the competition provides the “perfect opportunity for betting and therefore fixing” and believes “players are slaves to it”.
Botham made the comments while delivering the MCC Spirit of Cricket Cowdrey Lecture at Lord’s, BBC Sport reports.
The IPL has been dogged by allegations of corruption for many years with the competition routinely in the spotlight due to claims of spot fixing and illegal betting.
The annual tournament is known for paying it’s players huge salaries which means it can attract global stars like MS Dhoni and Kevin Pietersen.
The former England batsman was the only English player to be involved in this years tournament with the likes of Alex Hales overlooked by the competitions franchises.
Botham believes that the biggest problem with the IPL is that it provides the perfect opportunity for match fixing, something that blight’s the game at both domestic and international level.
“How on earth did the IPL own the best players in the world for two months a year and not pay a penny to the boards who brought these players into the game?
“Corruption is enough of a problem in itself, but the IPL compounds that problem given it provides the perfect opportunity for betting and therefore fixing.”
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