Mustafizur Rahman's KKR Release 'Unfortunate', Says IPL Chairman Arun Dhumal

Three months after Mustafizur Rahman was controversially dropped from the Kolkata Knight Riders squad, Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman Arun Dhumal has called the incident “unfortunate”. The decision had snowballed into an international issue, with a series of developments leading to Bangladesh being replaced by Scotland in the ICC T20 World Cup that was hosted by India and Sri Lanka.

In December 2025, Mustafizur was signed by KKR for INR 9.20 crore, making him the costliest Bangladeshi cricketer in IPL history. But the franchise was later instructed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to release the left-arm seamer amid political tensions between India and Bangladesh.

“I would only say it was unfortunate. Beyond that, I do not have much knowledge,” Dhumal was quoted as saying in an interview with Financial Times. The response was to a follow-up question on the Mustafizur case after the IPL chair claimed the Indian government did not have a role in "running cricket day to day".

Dhumal said, "It is unfortunate, I would say, the way things unfold at times. I do not think the government has any interest or any role to play in running cricket day to day. The government is supportive of cricket at large.

"But, yes, sometimes events happen around us and decisions follow. I am sure good sense will prevail and that this will not be the case going forward."

On January 3, 2026, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia had cited “recent developments” as the reason behind Mustafizur's removal. “Due to the recent developments that are going on all across, BCCI has instructed the franchise KKR to release one of their players, Mustafizur Rahman of Bangladesh, from their squad,” Saikia had said.

'Discussion On Longer IPL Window After 2027'

In the same interview, Dhumal said there could be a discussion on the bilateral calendar after 2027 to see if there is scope for the Indian Premier League to have a longer window. The IPL's present format comprises 74 matches, but all teams are not able to play each other twice in the league phase.

To do that, and possibly go from a 74-match schedule to a 94-match one, IPL's window needs to be expanded, and Dhumal felt that may not be implausible given the lack of interest in "some bilateral games". He said, "If you look at the transition over the last few years, there is definitely less interest in some bilateral games.

"That is why countries are coming up with their own leagues: the England and Wales Cricket Board's The Hundred, Australia's Big Bash League, the UAE's International League T20, South Africa's SA20 and the Caribbean Premier League.

"If this is the trend, then every country will want fewer bilaterals, or bilaterals that make more financial sense for them, and then there is scope to enlarge the IPL window. We are hoping for more discussions with all the countries and colleagues. If that works out, it should work out for everyone."

Lalit Modi Reacts Bullishly

Former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi reacted to Dhumal's remarks, claiming that such an expansion was a natural progression. Modi wrote on X: "Just as I predicted will happen. See the IPL teams turn into a goldmine. The IPL will be the ONLY GAME in the future for monetisation."

Modi added that he felt bad for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Rajasthan Royals owners as they "sold too early". Team values, he said, "already should be above 3.5 - to 4 billion the day this is implemented".

RR and RCB were recently acquired for one-billion-dollar-plus valuations. While Rajasthan was sold to a Kal Somani-led consortium for 1.63 billion USD, Bengaluru went to a consortium led by Aditya Birla Group, Blackstone, Times Internet, and Bolt Ventures for USD 1.78 billion.