Ali Tareen Response after PCB Legal Notice

The owner of the PSL franchise Multan Sultans, Ali Tareen, has torn up the legal notice sent to him by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

The legal notice demanded that he withdraw his critical statements and issue a public apology. It also warned of terminating the franchise agreement and blacklisting him, preventing him from owning any PSL team in the future.

Ali Tareen, however, said he will not stay silent because of such threats and released a video statement in response.

In his video, Ali Tareen said:

“I love the PSL. This league belongs to all of Pakistan. Till today, no one from the PCB has contacted me. I am willing to sit down and discuss the issues together. They asked me to apologize for demanding that competent people be included in PSL management fine, I apologize. The PSL management has sent me a legal notice saying that if I do not withdraw my statements and issue a public apology, they will cancel my Multan Sultans franchise agreement and blacklist me permanently from the PSL.

This is the real issue you don’t want to work with your stakeholders. You just want everyone to stay quiet and follow your line. You are so used to having ‘yes-men’ around that you can’t tolerate even the slightest criticism. I haven’t received a single call, message, or email inviting me to discuss these problems.

If you were even slightly competent, you would know that such matters are not managed through threats. And if you think such notices will silence me, you are mistaken. I love this league maybe even more than many of you because this league belongs to the fans and to Pakistan, not to the few people currently running it.

If you truly want to resolve issues, invite me over we’ll have a cup of tea, some biscuits, and talk things through. Let’s agree that there will be no public criticism moving forward and work together to make PSL a top league.”

Ali Tareen added that although his legal team advised him not to apologize, he still chose to do so:

“Only big-hearted people apologize. So yes, I apologize for wanting PSL to improve. I apologize for raising my voice when I saw issues. My mistake is that I disagree with your mediocre mindset. I apologize for wanting qualified, competent people in PSL management. I apologize for criticizing the opening ceremony and the mismanagement during the draft. I even apologize for attending a Zoom meeting 10 minutes late since that apparently hurt you enough to mention it in your legal notice.”

He sarcastically added that PSL’s management had called this the “biggest PSL ever”:

“Yes, the stadiums were full, the logistics were perfect half the teams in one hotel, half in another. Perfect management! Only six teams complained — that’s nothing! And the video of the guy diving into the water to bring out the trophy truly a game changer!”

Ali Tareen concluded his video by saying:

“So yes, I hope you liked my apology video with love.”

After releasing the video, Ali Tareen tore up the PCB’s legal notice, saying:

“If you think I’ll be scared or back off because of such threats, you’re wrong. I love PSL. This league belongs to all of Pakistan. I’m ready to sit down and work on solutions together, but I will not be silenced for demanding competence in PSL management.”