Hasan Minhaj’s Patriot Act torches ‘corrupt’ Indian cricket board

IPL founder Lalit Modi tells the Indian American comedian that “creating the war chest for the BCCI” was a mistake.

For the second time in two months, Indian American comedian Hasan Minhaj is turning to India for material. This time the subject of Patriot Act with Hassan Minhaj is the favorite Indian pastime: cricket. More precisely, “Cricket Corruption.”

The episode details how the Board of Control for Cricket in India, flush with the IPL money and accounting for 70 percent of the worldwide revenue in the game, is blocking the global growth of the sport.

Right off the gate, Minhaj says he “hated watching cricket” growing up, before going on to put the game in perspective for the American audience.

“[The] last time India and Pakistan played each other in the World Cup, over a billion people tuned in,” he says. “In terms of viewers, that’s nine Super Bowls, Game of Thrones finales or a billion Murphy Brown reboots. Nobody watched Murphy Brown, I’m sorry. And yet, when Americans hear the word ‘cricket,’ they think of the insect, the cola, or the data plan you get if you want to start selling cocaine.”

One of the highlights of the episodes is Minhaj’s interview with Lalit Modi, the fugitive founder of IPL. Modi, now living in London, confesses that he made a mistake by “creating the war chest for the BCCI.”

Watch the full episode on YouTube:

Here are the excerpts from Minhaj’s interview with Modi:

Minhaj: Does the BCCI have too much power over the ICC?

Modi:What do you mean? They control the bloody ICC. There is no ICC without the BCCI.

Minhaj: Do you think even a single match can take place without India?

Modi:No.

Minhaj: You think any broadcaster will buy any rights of the ICC without India?

Modi:No.

Minhaj: Is the BCCI preventing cricket from spreading to smaller countries?

Modi:Yes.

Minhaj: Is that bad for the sport?

Modi:Very bad for the sport.

…

Minhaj: Don’t you think you created this problem by creating the IPL?

Modi:I did, and I didn’t foresee this. That’s right. I am to blame for it.

Minhaj: This is the only thing you’ve taken blame for.

Modi: I am. I take blame for creating the war chest for the BCCI, completely.

The last time Minhaj show focused on an India-related topic was in the final episode of the second season, which was on the Indian elections.