Overview
- On Thursday, June 4, 2026, Modi told reporters he visited the Indian dressing room during the 2007 England tour and urged senior players to stay on for the inaugural ICC T20 World Cup.
- Modi said established players including Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly declined to play, with several players telling him the format was a novelty and they wanted to return home.
- He recalled that the BCCI effectively sent a young, second‑string squad led by MS Dhoni to South Africa rather than the full established team.
- That inexperienced side beat Pakistan in the final to win the tournament, a result Modi frames as the turning point that made T20 commercially viable and accelerated the launch of the IPL.
- Modi argued the episode shows how norms have changed, saying fielding a 'B' team to a World Cup would be unacceptable today and noting the wider effect on players, selectors and the sport’s money and media dynamics.