IPL is here to stay, says BCCI secretary

NEW DELHI: The Indian cricket board's (BCCI) newly-appointed interim secretary Sanjay Patel is confident that cricket will emerge cleaner from the spot-fixing scandal and that the Indian Premier League's long-term prospects will remain unaffected.

"We all love the game of cricket and can't see its image getting affected. The entire BCCI is working towards cleaning up the game. This is our big challenge but we are hopeful cricket will be the winner," Patel, who represents the Baroda Cricket Association, told TOI on Saturday.

"Apart from the IPL, everything in the board is functioning well. Our cricket team is doing well in England and there are no worries with the day-to-day working of the board. There is also a probe committee which is looking into the IPL," he said.

Asked if the BCCI would take the extreme step of stalling the IPL for a while to address all the issues afflicting the league, Patel said: "IPL is here to stay. There are external problems in the league and we are going to address each and every element before next year. Jagmohan Dalmiya is known to take tough steps and with so many senior officials around, I don't think these recent events can stall the league. Cricket is bigger than individuals."

On the possible remedial steps the BCCI might take, Patel said, "We will initiate a stricter code of conduct for the cricketers. We stopped the after-match parties a long time ago. The BCCI had nothing to do with the get together that were happening during the IPL season. The BCCI can't allow anything that is tarnishing the image of the league."

Patel, who was previously an IPL governing council member, said: "When I was offered the job, I took it up because this is the time to come and offer your services to the game which we all love."

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Shweta Pandey

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