Former India legend Sunil Gavaskar has raised serious concerns about overseas players’ commitment to the IPL, questioning how early franchises are informed of player unavailability and whether teams are being treated fairly after investing heavily in them. Writing in his Sportstar column, Gavaskar made it clear that simply informing franchises “in advance” is not a strong enough justification. He urged the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to introduce stricter guidelines to ensure better accountability from players, especially when franchises spend significant sums during auctions.

“To suggest that the franchise was ‘informed before’ isn’t a great excuse. And ‘informed before’ is how much before the opening day of the tournament?” Sunil Gavaskar questioned.

He further emphasised that while representing one’s country will always remain the top priority, franchise cricket also deserves professionalism and full commitment from players.

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“Playing for the country is paramount and comes before franchise cricket, but don’t the franchises, who open not just their wallets but also their hearts to players and often their families, deserve full commitment?” he added.

Gavaskar also dismissed workload management as a valid concern in T20 cricket, noting the limited physical demands on bowlers.

“It’s also worth remembering that a bowler can bowl only four overs in a match… what is stopping them from doing so in the game?” he remarked.

His comments come in the backdrop of Kolkata Knight Riders dealing with a bowling shortage, with Cameron Green yet to resume full bowling duties due to injury concerns. Despite prior communication from Cricket Australia, the situation has clearly not gone down well with Gavaskar.

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It’s not just KKR facing this issue. Sunrisers Hyderabad have also been impacted, with Pat Cummins ruled out for a significant part of the season. Gavaskar’s remarks underline a growing debate around player availability and the need for clearer regulations in modern franchise cricket.