Lalit Modi, the former IPL commissioner, has suggested that match-fixing remains a reality in cricket, while also stopping short of directly pointing fingers at the Indian Premier League. In an interview conversation with Wisden Cricket’s podcast The Scoop, Modi argued that corruption in the sport has become more sophisticated over time, making it harder to draw clear boundaries about where wrongdoing may or may not exist. He said he could not provide a straightforward “yes” or “no” when asked specifically about the IPL, adding that he genuinely does not know whether fixing is present in the tournament, even as he maintained that problems of this kind can be found in every sport.
Modi, who has largely been based in London after leaving India in May 2010, also explained why he believes the IPL is less likely to be a hotbed for fixing. According to him, the scale of money involved in the league has made it far too risky for players to tamper with results. He pointed out that with the financial stakes so high, there is little incentive to throw away careers for short-term gains.
Instead, Modi directed attention toward smaller domestic and regional competitions, claiming they are more exposed to manipulation due to weaker governance structures and limited oversight. He said that while the major leagues may be less affected, games in the smaller circuits can be “manipulated,” and he specifically referenced local “bachha” leagues as being heavily driven by fixing. He also highlighted how new small inter-city, inter-area, and inter-state leagues can be launched by entrepreneurs without the kind of corporate governance and monitoring seen in bigger setups, and he noted that the absence of broad media coverage—alongside that lack of structure—creates conditions where betting-driven interference can take root.
In that context, Modi linked the issue to the scale of betting activity in cricket, describing the market as enormous. He cited figures suggesting roughly Rs 40,000 crore wagered per day, and argued that with around 100 matches, it translates into a massive industry in cricket alone—an area he said many people do not discuss. He further stressed that cricket is particularly suited to ball-by-ball wagering because betting odds can shift with every delivery, which, in his view, makes smaller leagues especially susceptible to corruption. “Very toxic,” was how he summed up the environment in those competitions.
