NEW DELHI: Indian Premier League (IPL) side Deccan Chargers has been expelled from the tournament, the cricket board said on Saturday, despite a last-ditch effort by the team owners to pull it back from the brink.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said the termination of the franchise stands after Deccan Chronicle Holdings, owners of the team, failed to meet a Friday deadline to submit $19 million as guarantee money.

The BCCI now is free to decide whether to float a new tender to replace the IPL franchise belonging to the financially strapped Deccan Chronicle, a media company, unless the team’s owners opt to take the case to a higher court.

The BCCI, which owns the popular IPL tournament, had terminated the Chargers last month over a series of violations including non-payment of player’s fees, but the decision was challenged by the team owners in the Bombay High Court.

The court appointed an arbitrator to hear the dispute and also asked the owners to pay up the guarantee money as a pre-condition of remaining in the tournament.—AFP