Michael Vaughan replies to fan unhappy with ECB offering IPL teams stakes in 'The Hundred'

Amid the ongoing India Vs England series, reports of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) offering the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises a stake in The Hundred teams and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) a share of Asian television rights is doing rounds in order to lure Indian premier players like Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant and others.  

The Hundred has been conceptualized by the ECB. It is an upcoming cricket tournament set to be played in a new 100-ball format. The opening edition of the tournament is scheduled to begin on July 21 after suffering a postponement in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. It is to be played by eight teams in separate men's and women's tournaments. 

As per a recent report by the Telegraph UK, the two cricketing boards have been in talks since the pre-COVID-19 era but the talks made some progress only recently. Reportedly, BCCI and ECB had held talks when ECB chairman Ian Watmore and chief executive Tom Harrison were in Ahmedabad for the pink-ball Test in February. 

The report further states that the IPL franchises Rajasthan Royals and Kolkata Knight Riders have already shown interest in buying a stake in The Hundred franchises. In recent times, the KKR team owner Red Chillies Entertainment's CEO Venky Mysore confirmed that the Knight Riders are interested in owning a team in The Hundred after confirming their ownership in the Major League Cricket competition in the USA and already being the prime investor in the champion Trinbago Knight Riders team in the Caribbean Premier League.

However, the final decision has not been taken on this by the BCCI. It is reported that the BCCI will take a final call on this after India visits England for their series.  

However, this initiative by the ECB has not been welcomed by every section of English cricket fans. Recently, an English fan lashed out at former England captain Michael Vaughan for backing ECB's step to offer BCCI a stake in The Hundred. He even called this move by ECB to pay people for involvement in The Hundred. 

Michael Vaughan took to his Twitter handle and wrote: 

(Image Credits: Michael Vaughan/Facebook/Facebook/TheHundred)