Uthappa, 34, played the last of his 59 white-ball games for India in July 2015, although he is a regular in the IPL, having featured in all 12 seasons so far. On current rules, Indian men’s cricketers aren’t allowed to participate in foreign T20 leagues, putting careers such as Uthappa’s at a disadvantage when compared to players from other countries, several of whom turn to the T20 format when out of national reckoning.

“Please let us go, honest to god,” Uthappa was quoted as saying on the BBC‘s Doosra Podcast. “It does hurt when we’re not allowed to go play.

A T20 World Cup winner in 2007, Uthappa trusted Ganguly to bring about a change. “Ganguly is a very progressive thinking human being, someone who has always looked to take India to the next level. He actually laid the foundation for where Indian cricket is now,” said Uthappa.

“We’re hoping that he will look at this at some point.”