Cricket news

Irfan Pathan Sacked From Commentary Role In IPL 2025?  Big claim made in report 

The 18th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) kicked off with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) taking on defending champions, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Eden Gardens.  The BCCI organised an opening ceremony before the season opener.  The broadcasters are also making every effort to make the league memorable. The IPL 2025 season is being televised and streamed live in multiple languages.

A notable omission from the season's star-studded commentary panel is one of the game's legendary players. The list of season commentators does not include Irfan Pathan. For many years, the former India all-rounder has been a regular in the commentary box. He took up commentary even before his retirement from the game.  Irfan has carved out a niche for himself and is among one of the best commentators.

 The Times of India has published a report that makes a significant claim and explains why he was not included in the commentary panel. As per the report, Irfan has been dropped for having personal bias against certain players.  It also says that the broadcasters weren't happy that he talked about his resentments on air. His channel on YouTube is now live. “A few years ago, Pathan had an argument with a few players. Since then, he has not shied away from referring to them aggressively.  The possibility that additional junior players were caught in the crossfire was brought up. Even though he did not name them, he has been accused of taking potshots at them on social media," sources told TOI. Five years back, Sanjay Manjrekar was sacked from the commentary panel.  He returned to the league few years later.  In 2016, Harsha Bhogle was also dropped from the commentary panel.  The veteran commentator also made his return to the commentary box a year later.

 Related video: Champions Trophy squad meeting on 18-19 January, IPL dates confirmed: Rajeev Shukla (India Today)

IPL 2025 Points Table Update: Check the latest standings, NRR, and Playoff Race after SRH vs. RR and CSK vs. MI.

IPL 2025 Points Table:

Matchday 2 of the Indian Premier League 2025 saw a cracking double-header with the Sunrisers Hyderabad and Chennai Super Kings beating the Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians respectively to get their campaign underway with their first points on the board.

SRH on the back of Ishan Kishan’s sensational century and Travis Head’s quickfire fifty were able to register the second-highest innings total in IPL history.  Sanju Samson and Dhruv Jurel put up a strong fight, each scoring a half-century, but the Royals lost by 44 runs and saw a big drop in their net run rate as a result of the pressure on the scoreboard. 

Meanwhile, in the evening fixture, CSK were able to showcase their class as they were dominant against the MI who were without key stars like Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah.  Nonetheless, they were able to put up a good fight in the spin-friendly conditions at the Chepauk stadium.

 Spinners were as expected the highlight with Noor Ahmad setting the tone with a four-wicket haul.  However, it's interesting to note that MI's uncapped star Vignesh Puthur stole the show with three wickets in his IPL debut. Despite MI's poor batting performance, there are encouraging signs given the absence of big-name stars.

SRH take the top spot in the points table with their big win boosting their net run rate.  Rajasthan Royals respectively have taken a big hit but the good news is that considering how batters are dominating, RR will have a chance of turning the tides in the coming season.

 To begin their season on a winning note, SRH and CSK have joined the Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Meanwhile, the defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders along with RR and MI have picked up a defeat in their respective opening games for the season.

Tomorrow the Delhi Capitals and the Lucknow Super Giants will meet to get their season underway at the ACA International Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam at 7:30 PM (IST).  Rishabh Pant, who leads LSG, will play against the team where he started his IPL career, and Axar Patel will make his Capitals debut as captain.