IPL is the most expensive cricket league, and every cricketer wants to play IPL. Even some players earn more money from IPL than playing for their country. For running a big cricket league like the IPL, sudden rules need to be followed, and the governing council of the IPL does not take any misconduct lightly. So that's why there have been some bans imposed on players and others as well. So, let's look at Weirdest Bans in IPL.
1. Sanjay Manjrekar
Sanjay Manjrekar is a former right-handed batsman from India. Currently, he works as a commentator and faces a ban as well. It was the story of IPL 2020 when the IPL authority banned Sanjay Manjrekar from commentary due to his controversial statement. In his statement, he called Jadeja a "bit and pieces" player, which became a considerable controversy. After this statement, Sanjay Manjrekar also slammed Harsha Bhogle by questioning Bhogle's cricket knowledge and experience. Due to these disturbing statements, Sanjay Manjrekar was banned from the IPL commentator's panelists by BCCI authorities.
2. Ban On Sri Lankan Cricketers
Sri Lankan players have always played in IPL without any controversy and fights, but it is pretty shocking to believe that Sri Lankan cricketers have also been banned from IPL. This ban happened in IPL 2013 when there was a mounting political scenario going on between Sri Lankan players and Tamil Nadu. As a result, all Sri Lankan players got banned from Chepauk Stadium for the 2013 IPL. In light of the player's safety, Tamil Nadu wrote a letter to the deciding authority, which the council accepted.
3. Shah Rukh Khan
Shah Rukh Khan is one of the biggest celebrities in India. All cricket viewers know that Shahrukh Khan is the owner of the IPL franchise, Kolkata Knight Riders. It was the 65th match of IPL 2012, where KKR played against MI at Wankhede Stadium. After the KKR won the game, Shahrukh Khan got involved in a verbal fight with the Stadium's staff. The fight got so severe that he abused Stadium's staff as well. After all the battle, Shahrukh Khan was banned from entering the Wankhede Stadium. However, after three years, in 2015, the ban on him was overturned.
4. Manish Pandey
Manish Pandey is a right-handed batsman from India. Even though Manish Pandey got unsold in the 2024 IPL auction, no one can forget the crucial innings he played in IPL. Especially in the IPL 2014 final, Manish Pandey was the man of the match. He was also the first Indian to score a century in the IPL. Despite all these records, Manish Pandey faced a ban in IPL. It was the IPL 2011 where Manish Pandey was playing for RCB. In that season, Manish Pandey got a 4-match ban as he demanded more salary than his prescribed contract.
5. Mohammad Asif
IPL 2008 was the only IPL season where Pakistani cricketers played as well. In a 2008 auction, Delhi Daredevils bought Mohammad Asif. But he became one of the biggest draws in the inaugural season of IPL. Before playing IPL for Delhi Daredevils against Rajasthan Royals, Mohammad Asif got banned from IPL. The reason for his ban from the IPL was the drug found in his urine sample. As a result, he got banned from IPL for a year and lost his IPL contract as well. Mohammad Asif was then caught at Dubai airport with a drug.
6. Luke Pomersbach
Luke Pomersbach is a former Australian left-handed batsman who played for Kings XI Punjab in IPL 2008 and 2009. After playing for Punjab, he switched to Royal Challengers Bangalore for IPL 2011. In 2012, Luke Pomersbach returned to play for RCB. But in May 2012, he was arrested and charged with molesting a woman and assaulting his fiancé. After all these incidents, the IPL authority banned him from that season. Even though Luke Pomersbach got released on bail, he had to surrender his passport. The court later settled the case, and his charges were dropped. After that, Kings' XI Punjab bought him in IPL 2013, but he got to play only three games.
7. Harbhajan Singh
One of the most significant IPL controversies was in 2008, which was the first IPL season. It was the 10th match where MI and Punjab played against each other. Kings XI Punjab won the match by 66 runs, but controversy happened in the post-match. After the game finished, both team players were shaking hands, and, at that moment, Sreesanth joked about MI's loss to Harbhajan, which he did not tolerate, and slapped Sreesanth. As a result, Harbhajan Singh received a fine and suspension from that IPL season. Along with that, he also got banned from 5 ODI matches by BCCI.
8. Ravindra Jadeja
In today's era, Ravindra Jadeja is one of the finest all-rounders in the world. No one can forget his match-winning clutch innings in the 2023 finals. In the first season of IPL, Rajasthan Royals bought him. He played for Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2008 and 2009 and performed very well. Due to the sudden rise in performance, Ravindra Jadeja tried to negotiate a more extensive salary package with his franchise and other franchises without informing the governing body. As a result, Ravindra Jadeja got banned for an entire season of IPL 2010.
9. Pravin Tambe
Pravin Tambe is the oldest player to play the IPL. Even at the age of over 40, he played IPL. But this fantastic spinner has also got a ban in IPL. It was IPL 2020 when BCCI banned him from playing the IPL. Before the IPL 2020, Pravin Tambe went to play in the foreign T10 league. According to the BCCI rule, an active player cannot participate in foreign leagues. But BCCI did not know that he had already taken retirement from international cricket. As a result, BCCI removed the ban from him.
10. Harsha Bhogle
Harsha Bhogle is one of the most prominent commentators in the world. His speaking skills and fluency in English commentary make him one of the best commentators in the world. But in IPL 2016, Harsha Bhogle's contract was terminated by BCCI. The reason given by BCCI behind Bhogle's termination was his statements in the 2016 ICC World Cup when India played against Bangladesh. In that match, Harsha Bhogle praised Bangladesh's team, but many BCCI officials did not like his statement. For this reason, he got sacked from commentary in IPL 2016.
