Lalit Modi, the founder and first chairman of the Indian Premier League, said threats from Dawood Ibrahim's associates forced his departure from cricket administration [1].
These allegations link the high-stakes world of professional cricket to international organized crime. If verified, the claims suggest that match-fixing networks possessed the reach and resources to remove top sports executives through violence and bribery.
Modi spoke about the pressure he faced during a Moneycontrol interview. He said he was targeted because he refused to "look the other way" on betting and match-fixing [1]. According to Modi, this refusal led to direct threats against his life [1].
Regarding the scale of the corruption, Modi said he was offered hundreds of millions of dollars [1] to ignore the fixing activities. He said that he declined these payments [1].
Modi also alleged that the threats were not merely verbal. He said, "He took three hits at me..." [1]. These alleged attempts on his life were linked to elements connected to the fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim [1].
Modi did not provide specific dates for these events in the interview, but he framed them as the primary catalyst for his exit from the sport's governing structures [1]. He said that his integrity regarding the game's fairness made him a target for the criminal syndicate [1].
“"I was offered hundreds of millions of dollars to ignore fixing, but I declined."”
These claims highlight the intersection of global sports governance and transnational crime. By naming Dawood Ibrahim, Modi is connecting the internal corruption of cricket administration to a known fugitive and organized crime figure, suggesting that the influence of betting syndicates extends far beyond simple financial fraud into the realm of targeted violence.
