‘Ignored for 23 years; what do you think is the reason?’ – Laxman Sivaramakrishnan alleges racial bias, quits commentary

Former India cricketer Laxman Sivaramakrishnan has stepped down from his job as a commentator with the Board of Control for Cricket in India. Sivaramakrishnan made the decision public via multiple social media posts on his official 'X' (formerly Twitter) handle on Friday, March 20. 

The veteran commentator's retirement seems a forced one, though. A few posts later via his 'X' handle, Sivaramakrishnan has called out the ill faces of television production as a possible reason behind his call to put the microphone down. He believes that he has not been used for tosses and post-match presentations anymore, pointing towards racial discrimination.

"I am retiring from commentary for BCCI,' he said. "If I have not been used for tosses and presentations for 23 years and newcomers come in do pitch report, tosses, and presentations even when [Ravi] Shastri was coaching, what do you think could be the reason?' he added.

Under the replies section, where fans asked him the exact reasons, he seconded their opinions of being a victim of discrimination on the basis of his "black" skin colour.

It is worth mentioning that racial or any form of discrimination at workplaces is an offence as per the Constitution of India, and if Sivaramakrishnan's allegations are indeed right, it is not only an extremely unfortunate situation for one of the best voices of the game but also a violation of the national laws, eligible for strict punishment.

Notably, Sivaramakrishnan, who was once quite an active figure for India's bilateral home matches, has faded away from the limelight of calling at international games. However, he remained active with the BCCI for its domestic schedule, including commentary stints for popular tournaments like the Ranji Trophy, Vijay Hazare Trophy and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He had held the mike during the 2025-26 season as well.

The former leg-spinner seems to be hurt with the kind of discrimination he has allegedly been facing, and naturally so. Fans of all age groups have forwarded their strong support to the departing commentator, applauding him for addressing the elephant in the room, while also taking a strong stance against biased TV producers.

Sivaramakrishnan, a Chennai-born, grew up in the Tamil Nadu cricketing circles and rose through the ranks to become a skilled leg-break bowler for India, who also represented the national side during the 1987 ODI World Cup. At the time of his international debut, which came against Pakistan in 1983, Sivaramakrishnan became the youngest player to play for India, aged 17 years and 118 days at that time.

His short but interesting cricket career saw him feature in nine Tests and 16 One-Day Internationals for India, picking up 26 and 15 wickets, respectively. He played his last match at the age of a mere 21 years.