HoneY
MaaPeya Da LaaDLa
may 14 2008
In Bollywood, he is known as 'King Khan'. For some of the players in the Kolkata Knight Riders, however, Shah Rukh Khan has turned out to be a miserly king.
On Tuesday, the co-owner of the KKR franchisee decided to cut costs in the meanest possible manner, releasing five players from the remaining IPL games and politely 'asking' them to go home.
While Shah Rukh vehemently defended his decision, one of the 'ousted' players, Ranadeb Bose, said he had 'gained nothing' from his IPL stint. Bose, who was released along with Sourashis Lahiri, Rohan Banerjee, Yashpal Singh and Cheteswar Pujara from the KKR squad, said, "I can't speak for others, but I haven't gained anything from this experience.
I did absolutely nothing all these days. To learn something, you need to play. The question of taking positives doesn't arise." Ranadeb also said coach John Buchanan was "always busy with the main squad and didn't have much interaction with the reserves".
Shah Rukh, however, said too much should not be read into the 'release' of these reserve players and justified the team management's decision. "It's not just KKR who have taken a decision regarding the reserve players. A few other franchisees have taken a similar stand.
I absolutely support coach John Buchanan's decision of releasing some of the players who are not featuring in the XIV. There is no point in sitting and doing nothing. It's also fair if the coach feels he wants to concentrate on a lesser number of players as we are getting to an important stage in the tournament," he said, assuring that the contracts of all players would be honoured and they would get their salaries.
"There shouldn't be any ill-feelings among the players. These guys are all like my younger brothers and I would always like to ensure that at KKR nobody will be treated badly. It's not a one-year thing that we are doing. KKR is for life," Shah Rukh said.
Coach John Buchanan conveyed the decision to the five players. Knight Riders are the second franchisee after Team Mohali to cut their bench strength. Mohali had earlier released nine players.
The team management felt that these five would not fit into their squad in the remainder of the tournament. They were asked to go because these players were also not getting sufficient practice in the nets.
"Yes, we have been told that our services won't be required for the rest of the IPL. It would have been great had we got our share of chances. These things happen in a professional cricketer's life. Nobody feels happy to be dropped but we have to accept the decision," Bengal off-spinner Sourashis Lahiri told TOI.
In Bollywood, he is known as 'King Khan'. For some of the players in the Kolkata Knight Riders, however, Shah Rukh Khan has turned out to be a miserly king.
On Tuesday, the co-owner of the KKR franchisee decided to cut costs in the meanest possible manner, releasing five players from the remaining IPL games and politely 'asking' them to go home.
While Shah Rukh vehemently defended his decision, one of the 'ousted' players, Ranadeb Bose, said he had 'gained nothing' from his IPL stint. Bose, who was released along with Sourashis Lahiri, Rohan Banerjee, Yashpal Singh and Cheteswar Pujara from the KKR squad, said, "I can't speak for others, but I haven't gained anything from this experience.
I did absolutely nothing all these days. To learn something, you need to play. The question of taking positives doesn't arise." Ranadeb also said coach John Buchanan was "always busy with the main squad and didn't have much interaction with the reserves".
Shah Rukh, however, said too much should not be read into the 'release' of these reserve players and justified the team management's decision. "It's not just KKR who have taken a decision regarding the reserve players. A few other franchisees have taken a similar stand.
I absolutely support coach John Buchanan's decision of releasing some of the players who are not featuring in the XIV. There is no point in sitting and doing nothing. It's also fair if the coach feels he wants to concentrate on a lesser number of players as we are getting to an important stage in the tournament," he said, assuring that the contracts of all players would be honoured and they would get their salaries.
"There shouldn't be any ill-feelings among the players. These guys are all like my younger brothers and I would always like to ensure that at KKR nobody will be treated badly. It's not a one-year thing that we are doing. KKR is for life," Shah Rukh said.
Coach John Buchanan conveyed the decision to the five players. Knight Riders are the second franchisee after Team Mohali to cut their bench strength. Mohali had earlier released nine players.
The team management felt that these five would not fit into their squad in the remainder of the tournament. They were asked to go because these players were also not getting sufficient practice in the nets.
"Yes, we have been told that our services won't be required for the rest of the IPL. It would have been great had we got our share of chances. These things happen in a professional cricketer's life. Nobody feels happy to be dropped but we have to accept the decision," Bengal off-spinner Sourashis Lahiri told TOI.
