NEW DELHI: From Yash Dayal last year to Abhishek Porel now, the spotlight around some IPL stars has moved well beyond the boundary ropes and into police stations and courtrooms.Abhishek Porel’s arrest in Hooghly on Monday night in connection with a rape case has put the Delhi Capitals player at the centre of a legal trouble. The 23-year-old wicketkeeper-batter was arrested after the Calcutta high court directed police to take him into custody following allegations by a third-year medical student.The case has echoes of the legal troubles faced by Royal Challengers Bengaluru pacer Yash Dayal in 2025, when he faced two separate cases — one involving allegations of sexual exploitation by a woman who said he had promised to marry her, and another in Jaipur involving a minor who accused him of rape.The two cases are unrelated, and both remain matters for due legal process. But together, they have brought renewed attention to the scrutiny IPL players face away from cricket field.
Abhishek Porel
Porel’s arrest marks the most significant development in a case that began with a complaint by a medical student from Karnataka.According to her complaint filed at Mogra police station on June 23, she first met Porel in January 2023 and remained in regular contact with him from April that year. She alleged that they were in a relationship for around three-and-a-half years and that Porel had promised to marry her. She also claimed that their families had been involved in discussions about their marriage.The woman alleged that she travelled to Delhi on April 2, 2026, to meet Porel and was subsequently sexually assaulted. She further alleged that she was tortured, isolated and denied food, following which she was hospitalised.She also alleged that Porel threatened her and warned that photographs of their intimate moments could be made public.After approaching Mogra police, the woman moved the Calcutta high court, alleging police inaction in the case.Police registered a case under several provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including Section 69, which deals with sexual intercourse by deceitful means, including a false promise of marriage, along with provisions of the Information Technology Act.The Calcutta high court subsequently directed police to arrest Porel and seize his electronic devices. The court was told that police had already seized a pen drive and sent it for forensic examination.Porel was arrested by Mogra police late Monday night and produced before the Chief Judicial Magistrate’s Court in Chinsurah on Tuesday. His bail plea was rejected and he was remanded to three days of police custody.Porel and his family have not publicly responded to the allegations.The case has now cast an unexpected shadow over a player who had been making his mark in the IPL.
Yash Dayal
The Porel case comes a year after RCB pacer Yash Dayal found himself facing legal action on two separate fronts.In July 2025, an FIR was registered against Dayal in Ghaziabad after a woman alleged that he had sexually exploited her during a five-year relationship after promising to marry her.The complainant had first approached the Uttar Pradesh chief minister’s online grievance portal on June 21, 2025, before submitting a written complaint to police. She provided material including call records, chats, screenshots and video calls, according to police.The FIR was registered under Section 69 of the BNS.Dayal subsequently approached the Allahabad high court, challenging the FIR and seeking protection from arrest as well as its quashing.Later that month, Jaipur Police registered another FIR against Dayal after a minor accused him of rape. Police said the complainant alleged that the first assault took place in 2023, when she was 17, and that another alleged assault occurred at a hotel in Jaipur in April 2025.The case was registered under relevant provisions of the POCSO Act and the BNS and was under investigation.Dayal, who had started his IPL career with Gujarat Titans before moving to RCB, was part of Bengaluru’s title-winning campaign in 2025.The legal controversy has also had an impact on his cricketing career. Dayal was not part of RCB’s preparations for IPL 2026, with the franchise eventually confirming that he would miss the entire tournament due to what it described as a “personal situation”.
Not a new phenomenon
The legal troubles involving Porel and Dayal are not the first instances of Indian cricketers finding themselves embroiled in criminal cases.In 2015, India leg-spinner Amit Mishra faced an assault case after a Bengaluru woman alleged that he had attacked her in a hotel room. Ashoknagar police later filed a chargesheet against him under IPC Sections 354, 323 and 325.More recently, in November 2025, cricketer Vipraj Nigam approached police in Barabanki alleging that a woman had threatened him with calls and messages from multiple international numbers and had attempted to damage his reputation through fabricated social-media content.The cases are different in nature and at different stages of legal proceedings. But they underline the growing overlap between the private lives of high-profile sportsmen and the public scrutiny that follows them.
When the IPL spotlight follows players off the field
For years, the IPL has transformed relatively young domestic cricketers into household names almost overnight. With that rise comes money, fame, social-media attention and intense public interest in their personal lives.Porel’s arrest is the latest reminder of how quickly that spotlight can shift.A promising IPL career can be built over a handful of performances, but allegations and legal proceedings can create an entirely different narrative around a player.At the same time, an FIR, allegation or arrest does not establish guilt. The accused remain entitled to due process, and the allegations must be tested through investigation and judicial proceedings.
