The panel asked two banks to halt the disbursements after the board ignored some of the panel recommendations for reforming the world’s richest cricket board, which has been criticised for a perceived lack of transparency.

Thakur said the board would take a decision by the evening on the fate of the ongoing home series against New Zealand, which still has a test and five one-dayers left.

“Without the funds how do we play? How can we function, how can we make payments to the players and the various stakeholders?” Thakur told Reuters on Tuesday.

“We don’t even take money from the government and it’s our own funds. Our accounts have been frozen without even communicating with us.

“Is this how you treat the world’s richest cricket body which has run the sport so efficiently? It has completely destroyed our hard-earned reputation.”

Sources in the Bank of Maharashtra and Yes Bank, who operate the BCCI accounts, confirmed the accounts were frozen on Monday night as they waited for more clarity from the panel which was formed last year to assess BCCI operations.

The banks have now lifted the ban on the accounts after former chief justice RM Lodha, the head of the panel, clarified the BCCI is otherwise free to use its funds for routine expenditure.

“There is no question of cancellation of any game or series,” Lodha told Reuters TV.

“The directive, which we issued to BCCI yesterday in our email, is confined to disbursement of large funds to the state associations.

“And banks have been directed to ensure the compliance of that, nothing beyond that. Routine expenses for matches, games, cricketing activities and other administrative matters, they are not at all restrained.

“There is absolutely no prohibition, there is no constraint, the accounts of BCCI have not been frozen.”

A New Zealand Cricket spokesman said they had heard nothing from the BCCI and were preparing to play the third test at Indore from Saturday.

India sealed the three-test series 2-0 on Monday with a 178-run victory in Kolkata. The BCCI on Saturday said it would incorporate some of the Lodha panel’s recommendations but ignored several key measures aimed at reforming the board, which is run largely by politicians and industrialists.

In their report, Lodha and two colleagues recommended age and tenure restrictions for top officials, as well as banning them from serving successive terms.

This match will be India’s 250th on home ground.

“Kapil Dev will ring the bell,” the former India captain told reporters here.

The bell, resembling the one at Lord’s, is likely to be installed on Tuesday. Made of brass with a top coating of silver, it has been brought from Chandigarh.

A gold coin will be used for toss, and Ganguly informed the coin will be used for every match played at the Eden henceforth.

“The same coin will be used for the toss every time a match is played at the Eden Gardens,” he said.

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Anurag Thakur is expected to arrive in the city on October 1, the second day of the Test match. Thakur will hand over the specially-minted silver coins on Day 3 of the five-day affair.

The coin will be embossed with “250” and will be presented to former Bengal captains as well.

Ganguly also said the wicket at the Eden will turn as the match progresses.

“It will be a good wicket. There has been a lot of rain so the ball will turn slowly as the match wears on,” he said.

“According to the Broadcast Audience Research Council of India, the total TV viewership of IPL 2016 calculated by impressions stood at 102 crores. A report by management consultancy firm KPMG puts the total impact of IPL 2015 on the Indian economy at Rs 1,150 crore, more than 0.6 % of the country’s GDP,” states the report.

The BCCI has just floated an open tender for the T20 league’s global media rights (TV and digital) for a period of 10 years, with the digital rights available for half that period. The battle for these rights may see leading sports broadcasters like Sony Pictures Network India (SPNI) and Star Sports spend more than $4 billion to pocket them.

“The IPL’s been a sure-shot hit on the field and off it too. On the field it has given the talented players a stage and a platform to exhibit their skills. It has brought the cultures of cricketing countries together and gives youngsters a unique opportunity to see the greatness in front of their eyes and learn from them.

It has been the fastest-growing league in the world, and it has also changed the landscape of domestic sport in the country. After the IPL was

launched in 2008, many other sports have started such leagues. Numbers prove that the IPL has set a benchmark, and at the BCCI, we’re extremely proud of this,” BCCI president Anurag Thakur told TOI.

“In a short span of nine years, the IPL has created a legacy of its own and changed the dynamics of cricket. It has been the catalyst to revive the culture of domestic sports in India, and many other sports have followed in its footsteps,” Thakur added.

“The IPL is growing by 20% every year. It is a broadcasters’ delight, and a preferred platform for all the advertisers.

Look at how Vivo (mobile company) has become a house-hold name after becoming the title sponsor of the league. Expect the digital rights of the event to soar exponentially in the coming years, which is why they’ve been sold for only five years,” said another BCCI official. Vivo, it is estimated, paid around INR 100 cr to buy the title sponsorship earlier this year.

According to a survey carried out by the board, the 2016 IPL was a superhit. 52% of the TV viewing households watched the tournament, with the league’s cumulative TV reach being 361 million viewers. 1,543,655 spectators went to watch the matches on the ground, while 4,40,000 people paid a visit to the ‘fanparks,’ an initiative taken by the BCCI to popularise the league in tier-2 cities.

The BCCI has claimed that the net viewership of the league has hit the 100 million mark.

The ‘Summer Slam’ is leading the charts on the social media too, as per the survey. At 300%, its growth on Twitter is the fastest among all the top sporting leagues of the world since 2014 – the UEFA Champions League is next with 239%, with NFL (125%), NBA (99%) and MSL (75%) following it. According to it, at 300%, the Kolkata Knight Riders, in the past two years, is recording a faster growth on Twitter than even Manchester United (204%) — one of the most popular football clubs of the world. – TNN

In a congratulatory letter to the new BCCI chief, Sumathipala said “… Your unanimous victory reflects the confidence and faith of the membership of the BCCI … I am confident that under your leadership the game will continue to progress and flourish …”

The 42-year-old Thakur replaces Shashank Manohar who is the newly appointed Chairman of the International Cricket Council. The former Secretary whilst being the youngest elected President, is also first first-class cricketer to turn BCCI president since 1998.