The first edition of the IPL, in 2008, featured no fewer than 11 Pakistan cricketers employed by the various franchise. The Kolkata Knight Riders had three on their roster, as did the Rajasthan Royals. Delhi Daredevils, Deccan Chargers and Royal Challengers Bangalore each had one representative.
Then came the events of 26 November 2008, when the city of Mumbai was attacked by ten members of the terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba, an Islamic organisation based in Pakistan. A total of 175 people were killed in the attacks and more than 300 injured, as the city’s famous Taj Hotel endured an armed siege that lasted several hours.
The sole surviving attacker, Ajmal Amir Kasab, later revealed the Pakistan origins of the attack, but the government there was slow to act in trying to root out the organisers behind the attack.
It placed further strains on the already fragile relationship between the two countries, and was to have a direct impact on cricket as well.
The Indian government had stopped the national team undertaking a test tour of Pakistan in January 2009. Later, the Pakistan Cricket Board decided that its leading cricketers would not be allowed to participate in the 2009 IPL because of security concerns, with fears that individuals could be targeted by Indians motivated by revenge.
Since then, despite the principle that sport and politics should not mix, this came seems to be an exception. No Pakistan cricketer has played in the IPL since, and there is no imminent prospect of their return.
From a purely sporting perspective, it means that cricket fans have been denied the opportunity to see the likes of Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shaheen Shah Afridi in action. Babar currently tops both the ODI and T20I ICC batter rankings, and would surely have been an asset for any franchise.
Instead, historians have to make do for now with the exploits of the original eleven men who did venture over the border back in 2008. The most successful of them was Sohail Tanvir of the Rajasthan Royals who won the Purple Cap in that inaugural season, taking 22 wickets in 11 matches.