Ali Tareen, owner of Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchise Multan Sultans, has issued a very sarcastic ‘apology’ after receiving a legal notice from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
Presented as contrition but delivered with asides, his response took aim at league management while acknowledging the board’s grievances over alleged violations of the 10-year franchise agreement.
According to the notice, the PCB accused Tareen of violating several clauses of the PSL franchise agreement and demanded both a public apology and retraction of his critical remarks. He warned that non-compliance could result in Multan Sultans’ contract being terminated and seeing Tareen blacklisted from the league – an ultimatum that would significantly raise the stakes of the dispute.
By posting a video on his
Tareen began by describing the CPC’s ultimatum before questioning the board’s approach to conflict. He expressed frustration with the lack of direct communication, saying he never received “a single call, message, email or invitation asking to meet and resolve these issues together.”
“Instead, I received legal notice,” he said. “If you were more knowledgeable, you would know that these issues are not handled this way.” He accused the management of being surrounded by “yes men” and unable to accept criticism, saying the league “belongs to the fans and the whole of Pakistan, not the handful of people who are running it now.”
While stating that his legal team saw no need for an apology, Tareen issued one “because I want the PSL to improve.” His apology, however, only served to reiterate all of his previous complaints.
He apologized for expressing frustration when he noticed problems and for his critical remarks about what he perceived to be a lack of professionalism.
He apologized for “criticizing the opening ceremony”, sarcastically praising the “incredible” act of having “national stars… lip-syncing”. He acknowledged that wanting the ceremony to “start on time, end on time and have the microphone working properly” was going “too far.”
He addressed the minor grievances mentioned in the notice, sincerely apologizing for being “10 minutes late” to a Zoom meeting and for claiming that “PSL wouldn’t have any bugs”, while sarcastically noting the seamless logistics that saw “half your team in one hotel and the other half in another”.
Striking a conciliatory note amid the sarcasm, Tareen offered a simple solution: “call me, buy me a cup of tea and some biscuits, and let’s sit down together and talk.” He suggested they could agree to end public criticism and work together to improve the league.
The video ended with Tareen tearing up the legal notices, a final act of defiance after his “apology.” He ended his statement with, “So, I hope you like my apology video.”
