No gochi over Kochi, IPL franchise and Lalit Modi insist

WHILE Vivek Venugopal, co-owner of the Kochi Indian Premier League franchise promised that his consortium would reveal all details of their team owners to the Board of Control for Cricket in India, there was no official word as to who the other owners are.

According to media reports, the franchise ran into trouble with the BCCI because they had not revealed the names of the owners in the agreement. It was also reported that 25 per cent stakes were granted to an unknown party for free. Kochi and Pune will make up a 10-team IPL next year.

Venugopal stressed that they had followed the tender document in "letter and spirit" and had not been officially informed by the BCCI about a so-called problem.

"Ignore. All speculation. Delay due to consortium agreement not in line with franchise agreement. That is being done," said IPL commissioner Lalit Modi on Twitter about the controversy.

"Masala story of the day: Kochi IPL in danger," wrote television news personality Rajdeep Sardesai on Twitter, adding that another team was trying to get in through the back door. But Modi shot back: "no such thing possible."

MiD DAY learns that an issue is being raked up by a party that lost out on the bid. It was also rumoured that a politician, a former India captain and a current India player had stakes in Team Kochi.

Meanwhile, the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) has lost no time in planning for their Kochi stadium. KCA secretary T C Mathew was at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium in Chandigarh yesterday as part of his visits to check out several stadiums. "We want to start work on our stadium as soon as possible. It will be on Beach Road, near the backwaters," Mathew told MiD DAY in Mohali.