Top five controversies in cricket in 2021
2021 has been a year to remember for the cricket fans as some exciting battle has been witnessed over the 22 yards. From the Indian Premier League to Pakistan Super League and T20 Blast, several T20 competitions entertained the fans thoroughly. International cricket was also on a roll with the T20 World Cup and the World Test Championship final being highlights of this year.
Besides exciting action over the 22 yards, 2021 will also be remembered for its fair share of controversies. From Virat Kohli’s unceremonious sacking as India’s ODI captain to Tim Paine’s ‘sexting’ scandal, many incidents took place which took the cricket world by storm.
Meanwhile, let’s look at the top 5 controversies in cricket in 2021:
New Zealand, England cancel Pakistan tour
The BLACKCAPS are abandoning their tour of Pakistan following a New Zealand government security alert.
Arrangements are now being made for the team’s departure.
More information | https://t.co/Lkgg6mAsfu
— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) September 17, 2021
Pakistan Cricket Board looked all set to host New Zealand and England after more than a decade. However, cricket boards of both nations decided to call off the tour. While New Zealand Cricket took the decision due to security concerns, ECB cited the mental well-being of their players behind their call. PCB suffered a big financial loss due to the cancelled series.
Taliban banning women’s cricket in Afghanistan
Women’s cricket was banned in Afghanistan following the takeover of the Taliban. With women’s cricket not being supported in the nation, Cricket Australia cancelled the historic Test against the Afghan team. Amid the issue, ICC even appointed a committee named the Afghanistan Working Group to review cricket proceedings in the nation.
IPL 2021 getting suspended midway
The 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) was suspended midway amid the second wave of the COVID-19 virus. The second half of the competition took place in UAE in September-October, which saw Chennai Super Kings getting the glory.
Tim Paine’s ‘sexing’ scandal
Days before the start of Ashes 2021-22, Tim Paine stepped down as Australia’s Test captain in awake of a ‘sexting’ scandal. Back in 2017, the wicketkeeper-batter had sent several inappropriate messages to a then female colleague at Cricket Tasmania. With the episode coming out in public, Paine found it best to step down as the Test captain. Notably, Paine has also taken an indefinite break from all forms of cricket citing mental health reasons.
Virat Kohli’s sacking as ODI captain
BCCI dropped a bombshell on December 8 by sacking Virat Kohli as ODI captain, giving the charge to Rohit Sharma. Notably, Kohli, who stepped down as T20I skipper post the T20 World Cup, had stated he’ll continue leading the team in the other two formats.
More interestingly, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and Kohli then came up with contradicting statements. While Ganguly stated he ‘personally requested’ Kohli to not give up T20I captaincy, the latter refuted the claims.
