Launched on October 25 at Srinagar's Bakshi Stadium and inaugurated by Jammu and Kashmir Youth Services and Sports Minister Satish Sharma, the Indian Heaven Premier League (IHPL) T20 tournament ignited massive excitement with eight teams featuring international stars like Chris Gayle, Thisara Perera, Richard Levi, and Ayan Khan, alongside promising local Kashmiri talent.
Promoted by the Mohali-based Yuva Society and championed by Jammu & Kashmir cricketers, the IHPL sought to invigorate sports tourism across the Kashmir Valley. The crisis erupted when Delhi-based organizers allegedly vanished, defaulting on payments worth tens of lakhs. Enraged players, umpires, and staff boycotted weekend fixtures at Bakshi Stadium, decrying unpaid dues, absent contracts, and rampant mismanagement.
''The league has had to finish early; this is not the fault of the players or the hotel management or any other staff. It's all being done by the league. Unfortunately, the bills have not been paid, hotels have not been paid. The hotel was instructed to lock all doors and all players to leave. We are still waiting and none of us have been paid. The league management is nowhere to be seen, and they have not been taking anyone's calls. We have come to an agreement with the hotel to let players leave, '' said England's Mellissa Juniper, an ECB umpire.
The Jammu & Kashmir Sports Council swiftly distanced itself, with Secretary Nuzhat Gul clarifying that the IHPL was a private venture that merely rented Bakshi Stadium under standard protocols, unaffiliated with the government or the Jammu & Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA).
Local outrage swelled in its wake. Kashmiri cricketer Arif Kataria lambasted the "outsiders" for exploiting the Valley's passion for the game: "No verification, no transparency, the empty stands spoke volumes." As stranded players scatter and the promised November 8 final fades into oblivion, the IHPL's scandal casts a long shadow over Kashmir's sporting dreams, exposing the dangers of unchecked opportunism in Indian cricket's shadowy fringe leagues.
As players depart Srinagar, the fiasco has ignited urgent scrutiny over the unchecked explosion of private cricket leagues across India, many evading BCCI oversight. For Kashmir, eager to position itself as a vibrant sports tourism hub, the IHPL's implosion is a profound humiliation, a stark reminder of how visions of glamour and opportunity can swiftly unravel into a farce of deception and disorder.
