Will not sponsor Indian team if Srinivasan continues: Sahara

Having pulled out its franchise Pune Warriors from the Indian Premier League (IPL), Sahara chief Subrata Roy fired another salvo saying he would immediately stop sponsoring the Indian team if N. Srinivasan continues to be the president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

"Person like Srinivasan does not know how to run cricket. Sahara will not sponsor team India as long as N Srinivasan stays as its chief," Roy was quoted as saying by a TV channel.

Roy said BCCI's style of functioning was disgusting, irritating and frustrating.

The BCCI and Sahara have been at loggerheads over the IPL franchise fee. Sahara's repeated requests the BCCI to revise its franchise fees - $370 million over 10 years, the highest in the IPL - was never entertained. They had to pay Rs.120 crore (around $21.6 million) this year before the start of the season but after they failed to do so, the BCCI encashed the bank guarantee.

An angry Sahara pulled out Pune Warriors from the IPL and also said that it would not renew its sponsorship of the Indian cricket team after December.

Roy said BCCI didn't even have courtesy to reply to Sahara's letter.

"The board was not even interested in talking to us to sort out differences. And we didn't have any choice than to pull out of the IPL," said Roy.