Decision to hand Yuvraj Singh an NOC to play in T20 leagues was a one-off decision, declares CoA member

Decision to hand Yuvraj Singh an NOC to play in T20 leagues was a one-off decision, declares CoA member

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A CoA member has revealed that Indian players would not be given clearance to participate in T20 leagues around the world and that Yuvraj Singh's case was an exception. However, the BCCI officials feel the rules must be the same for everyone and the change in policy is harsh on other players.

After Yuvraj Singh announced his retirement a few months back, he had stated his intention to continue playing competitive cricket around the globe by participating in domestic T20 leagues. However, to do so, a player requires a no-objection certificate from his home country’s governing body of cricket and Yuvraj Singh was issued the same by the BCCI after approval from the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators, But while the cricketer is now plying his trade in Canada's Global T20 league, CoA has clarified its stance as to handing the same to other Indian players.

“What happened in Yuvraj’s case was a one-off and we aren’t looking at handing out any NOCs at present for playing in foreign leagues. We discussed the matter, but felt no action is required to be taken on the issue,” a CoA member was reported saying by the Hindustan Times.

The decision was not taken down well by BCCI officials, who felt that it was unfair to the other cricketers in the country. Players who have been out of the frame for the national team for quite some time and were contemplating playing in T20 leagues instead of retiring now see themselves being left them without an alternative. The BCCI has always been against allowing Indian players to participate in foreign leagues and hance Yuvraj’s exception came as a surprise to most.

“There is something called consistency, but clearly not under the current administration in the board. Arbitrary decision making isn’t the way when it comes to players and their careers. There might be quite a few former players who are no longer part of the scheme of things when it comes to the Indian team who would have thought of retiring and playing in T20 leagues. This sudden U-turn is unfair on them,” a BCCI official said.

Yuvraj Singh had also stated recently that he would no longer be participating in the country’s own cash-rich T20 tournament, the Indian Premier League. This has led another BCCI official to state that once a player announces retirement, he should not be allowed to play any competitive cricket. 

“To be honest, you don’t retire geographically. You either retire or you don’t. If some country is permitting retired players to play in T20 leagues, that is an ICC issue. The ICC wishes to be ignorant on such issues. But as far as this U-turn is concerned, it is wrong,” the official claimed.

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