After nearly 14 years, the Bombay High Court has finally ordered the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to now-default Kochi Tuskers Kerala franchise owners 538 crores. Indian premiere league (IPL). The franchise, which was played only in the 2011 season, was suddenly terminated by the BCCI for an alleged violation of the contract.
The Kochi Tuskers, which was formed in 2010, was jointly owned by an association under the Kochi Cricket Private Limited (KCPL) and Rendezavas Sports World (RSW). The team made its debut in IPL 2011, which finished eighth under the captaincy of Mahela Jayawardane and featured players like Brendon McCullum, Steve Smith, VVS Laxman and Ravindra Jadeja.
However, the tenure of the franchise in the league was reduced in September 2011, when the BCCI abolished its agreement, citing failure to offer a compulsory bank guarantee. The decision inspired KCPPL and RSW to initiate negotiation proceedings, stating that the termination was illegal. On 18 June 2025, Justice Riyaz of Bombay High Court came. Chagla confirmed the earlier arbitration awards in 2015, with INR 153.34 crore to compensate for BCCI with INR 385.50 crore and RSW with RSW.
The BCCI counsel told Cricbz, “The court has upheld arbitration. It is now up to the BCCI whether the Supreme Court has to challenge the verdict. The BCCI has a time of up to six weeks.”
Rejecting the BCCI's plea under Section 34 of the Mediastics and Reconciliation Act, Justice Chagla ruled that the arbitration was held within the appropriate and legal limitations.
“I am considering the idea that no valid basis has been raised in the KCPL petition and the RSW petition under Section 34 of the Arbitration Act to intervene with the KCPL Award and RSW Award, which has no patents in the awards.
The court also noted that BCCI's call for bank guarantee is a rejected violation amount of the franchise agreement, and therefore, Kochi was entitled to the losses awarded with tuskers.
Get every cricket update! Follow us,
Leave a Reply