Former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi has spoken in favor of former England captain Kevin Pietersen after he accused the ECB of ending his international career. Pietersen said that his stint with the English team was cut short because of his dispute with the officials over his participation in the Indian Premier League. In his interview with Ranveer Allahbadia, he was not treated fairly by the England and Wales Cricket Board after he preferred IPL. The legendary batter scored 8,181 runs in Test cricket, with the help of 23 hundreds and 35 fifties.
Lalit Modi took to X to slam the England cricket board.
“The biggest sacrifice by @KP24 – and a big boost for the @IPL. Will never forget this. He was critical, as far as I am concerned, for the integrity of the #IPL. Stupid as usual from the @ECB_cricket. A pompous body full of itself. No care for the players and fans alike. History proves it – first the Stanford fiasco, second the BIGGEST FIASCO WAITING TO HAPPEN: @thehundred. Pity all the owners who bought into this scam of all scams. The fine print on their prospectus says it all,” wrote Lalit Modi.
The biggest sacrifice by @KP24 – And a big boost for the @IPL Will never forget this. He was critical as far as I am concerned for the integrity of the #ipl. Stupid as usual of the @ECB_cricket – a pompous body full of themselves. No care for the players and fans alike. History… https://t.co/V7mfOf8VhC
— Lalit Kumar Modi (@LalitKModi) April 6, 2026
ECB had barred England players from participating in the inaugural edition of the IPL in 2008. Dimitri Mascarenhas was the only English player to compete in the first season.
In 2009, England gave NOC to its players to participate in the cash-rich league for three weeks. Pietersen joined Royal Challengers Bangalore (now Royal Challengers Bengaluru), and his preference for the league led to tensions with the ECB.
“I lost my career despite making big sacrifices. Everyone turned against me. I was 33 when my England ended. I should have played 150-160 Test instead of 104 and scored 12000-13000 runs. The Telegraph was used to go against me. I don’t want to go too deep into controversy. I am living a peaceful and happy life,” Pietersen said.
