The 18th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) kicked off with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) taking on defending champions, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Eden Gardens. The BCCI organised an opening ceremony before the season opener. The broadcasters too aren't leaving any stone unturned to make the league a memorable one. The IPL 2025 season is being televised and streamed live in multiple languages.

The star-studded commentary panel for the season includes many legends of the game but there is one notable omission from the list. Irfan Pathan isn't part of the list of commentators for the season.

The former India all-rounder has been a regular in the commentary box for many years now. He took up commentary even before his retirement from the game. Irfan has carved out a niche for himself and is among one of the best commentators.

A report in The Times of India has made a big claim and stated the reason behind his non-inclusion in the commentary panel. As per the report, Irfan has been dropped for having personal bias against certain players. It adds that broadcasters were not happy with him bringing his grudges on air. Irfan has launched his YouTube channel.

“Pathan had a fallout with a couple of players a few years ago. Since then, he has not shied away from referring to them aggressively. The matter was raised that other junior players got caught in the crossfire. He has been accused of taking potshots at them on social media platform even if he didn’t name them," sources were quoted as saying by TOI.

Five years back, Sanjay Manjrekar was sacked from the commentary panel. He returned to the league few years later. In 2016, Harsha Bhogle was also dropped from the commentary panel. The veteran commentator also made his return to the commentary box a year later.

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