PCB chairman Ijaz Butt has slammed the Indian Premier League for snubbing Pakistan's players during the recent auction.
Pakistan chief furious with players being ignored in IPL draft
Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ijaz Butt has hit out at the Indian Premier League for snubbing the country's international players during the recent auction.
11 Pakistan internationals including star all-round Shahid Afridi were snubbed by the IPL teams at the auction in Mumbai with no bids coming in for them.
Afridi and his agent hit out at the league and the Indian government's stance on working visas, and now Butt has also voiced his anger.
"We are highly disappointed because we were hoping they (Pakistan's players) would play," Butt said. "The IPL had given us the mandate to get permission from our foreign office, to obtain other clearances and to finalise visas.
"We did all this, but it is a surprise that none of them have been taken at the auction. We have been trying to get in touch with the concerned authorities but with no avail.
"I have asked the sports minister (Ijaz Jakhrani) to speak to his counterpart in India about this."
Aggrieved
Butt said he was aggrieved by the manner in which his players were treated, saying they should have been warned they would not be included.
"I agree this is a private event, but to be excluded without giving any reason and without looking at the background is unfair," he said.
"If they had told us we would have told the boys not to apply at all."
Pakistan's players were not allowed to travel to India for the last edition of the IPL because of the Mumbai terror attacks and although the tournament was moved to South Africa, they were still barred from participating.
Before the start of the second edition of the tournament last year, franchises who had Pakistan players in their squads were advised to either terminate their contracts or suspend them.
But contracts for all players were terminated in December last year when IPL chairman Lalit Modi revealed the players had failed to meet a deadline to submit clearances.
