Lalit Modi issues grave allegations on five-time IPL champions; Exposes their alleged role in fixing

Former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi has launched a scathing attack on the five-time IPL champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and also mounted serious accusations of potential auction-fixing charges against former BCCI president N. Srinivasan.

Lalit revealed that the moment he started unraveling his infamous fixing plot, Srinivasan had reportedly turned against him. At present, Lalit has leveled two serious allegations against Srinivasan. 

His first allegation centers around Srinivasan's alleged role in influencing the 2009 mega-auction in which he pressured the other franchises to keep away from Andrew Flintoff. And in his second allegation, Lalit exposes how Srinivasan attempted to interfere with the game by appointing Chennai-based umpires to influence decisions in his team's favor. 

Lalit Modi gits Andrew Flintoff To N Srinivasan (CSK)

In a recent interview, Lalit highlighted how the former BCCI secretary played a key role in manipulating the auction to ensure Andrew Flintoff was picked by CSK only. At Srinivasan's request, Modi confessed that he had advised the other teams secretly not to pick Freddie Flintoff. 

"Pick out everything—auction rigging. I gave Flintoff to Srinivasan. No doubts about it; every team knew about it. Srinivasan wasn’t going to let the IPL happen. He was a thorn in our Board. Yes, we told everybody not to pick ‘Flintoff.’ Yes, that I did—because Srinivasan said he wanted it."

Manipulating the umpires for a Chennai game

If that wasn't enough, Srinivasan went a step further to interfere in yet another aspect of the game. He tried to have Chennai-based umpires officiate the home games for CSK so as to ensure that the critical decisions go in his team's favor. Modi labeled this move as "indirect fixing" in his recent interview and spoke at length about how Srinivasan turned out to be a thorn in his side during the formative years of the IPL.

"At first, I didn’t think much about it. But when I realized he was putting a Chennai umpire on a Chennai game, it became an issue for me. That’s called indirect fixing. When I started exposing those things, he went totally against me. When everybody started going back-to-back, he was also a member of the board. He was a big adversary of mine. I went up against him, and he did many things. Umpire fixing—he accused me of it, and I accused him right back. He would change the umpire."

CSK is one of the most successful teams in the IPL with five title under their belt. Under Dhoni's flamboyant and esteemed leardership the Chennai-based outfit soared to new heights. However, the franchise did come under fire when the world first became aware of its role in match-fixing and was subsequently banned for two years in 2016 and 2017. 

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