Ex-India spinner slams BCCI for conducting IPL matches during Tamil Nadu polls: ‘Country should be given more importance'

Voting for the 2026 Assembly elections are in full swing with the first phases taking place in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. TN has single-phase voting across 234 assembly constituencies, while WB undergoes phase one voting for 152 constituencies simultaneously.

Notably, the Indian Premier League 2026 season also continues alongside the 2026 Assembly elections in a crucial time for West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.

Questions have arisen over the BCCI's scheduling of IPL 2026 fixtures on key polling days, with former India spinner Laxman Sivaramakrishnan voicing his concern on social media.

Laxman Sivaramakrishnan questions IPL scheduling

Laxman Sivaramakrishnan called out the BCCI, saying they should not have scheduled a match on Thursday, 23 April and instead should have allowed the Tamil Nadu-based players to vote. He further expressed that while the IPL comes every year, elections happen once every five years, given that they decide the future of the state and the country.

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“BCCI should not have had a game today. They should have allowed all the Tamil Nadu based players to vote. IPL comes every year. Elections which comes once in 5 years to determine the future of the state and country should be given more importance,” the former Indian spinner wrote on X on Thursday.

Sivaramakrishnan further expressed his confusion in a follow-up tweet, writing, "Or did they think no Tamil Nadu players in CSK, we will have an off day for other teams in which TN players are playing, to go to Chennai to vote, I am confused."

IPL set to host mega fixture in Mumbai

Amid the criticism, the action in IPL 2026 continues with a high-profile fixture scheduled for Thursday, April 23, 2026, when the Mumbai Indians host the Chennai Super Kings at the Wankhede Stadium in a fixture that is widely regarded the 'El Clásico' of IPL.

Both sides have been at the lower end of the points table so far, and a win could help them bounce back. Additionally, it is expected to be a star-studded affair, but in the absence of two of the biggest names in MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma.