Let's talk cricket, says Kings XI co-owner Preity Zinta

MUMBAI: For Preity Zinta, the glass is always half full. While her franchise, Kings XI Punjab, enjoyed a great run in the Indian Premier League (IPL) last season, she made all the news off the field for her bitter battle with the team's co-owner Ness Wadia.
There were a slew of exchanges from both sides. She gave it to Wadia and the business scion gave it back. She filed a police complaint and went back to work.Wadia gave his side of the story and laid low.
In the backdrop, a fabulous season that the Kings XI Punjab had got overshadowed.
But speak to Preity about it now and the controversy is not something eating into her mind. It's the season coming up, and the prospect of seeing the players have another go at the title that's keeping her busy .
"Each time 'Preity Zinta's team' is in the news, some controversy has to follow. Either it's about my personal life or how the franchise is going on sale or how I've moved out of my house, or how (because I hugged a cricketer) I'm going around with him, or how my stake in the franchise is a gift to me and I'm just a brand ambassador.
"I'm fed up of answering these stupid questions all the time," she tells TOI during an exclusive chat on Tuesday.
The KXIP franchise made it to the IPL final in 2014 and played some exciting cricket throughout before going down against Knight Riders Kolkata in the title clash. But she's hardly faced questions about her team's success, something she says she's painstakingly worked on the last seven years.
Instead, it's always her personal life. "If I hug somebody , there's something more to it. Always. Our Prime Minister hugged the American president recently. So is there a relationship between them? After Knight Riders first won the title, Shahrukh Khan had his legs wrapped around Shoaib Akhtar. So?
"Just because I am a woman?" Her franchise ­ co-owned by Wadia and Dabur's Mohit Burman ­ has made a good profit ­ estimated to be around Rs 14 crore ­ this season. It's been a rarity of sorts in the IPL for franchises to be breaking even every year and it's certainly something the team can be happy about. "We once made a small profit in one of the seasons gone by but that time we were so tied up with all the court cases, the bank guarantees and all. This time, we could make some money," she says.
She says she still lives in the same house as against what the media has reported. "But has anyone bothered to check? It's just like how one reputed newspaper published a story a couple of years back that our franchise had been sold to the Hero Group and didn't even bother to ask us before coming out with the story . People just say whatever they want and get away with it," she says.
Preity and the rest of the KXIP co-owners are still dealing with the fraud committed by one of their sponsors in the 2013 season that left the team in the lurch by more than Rs 13 crore.
"Nobody's talking about it. The investigation hasn't speeded up at all. But each time we (KXIP) have to pay a crore or two, news immediately flashes that 'Preity's team hasn't paid yet'. Why this discrimination?" she says.
Eyebrows were raised when she sat next to Wadia at the IPL players' auction last month. Ask her about it and she glares back."Why don't you ask him why he came and sat next to me? What did you want me to do, cut the table into two halves? Kings XI Punjab is my team and I've given everything, my hard-earned money. I gave up on my film career to be part of this," she says.
Preity has a point to make."What happened between me and Ness was unfortunate. But the franchise is my baby and there's no question of me cutting of my involvement with it," she says.
On Tuesday , she was in Mumbai along with Virender Sehwag and Burman to launch her team's new jersey .
Unlike most franchises who like to spend big on players, Punjab, she says, went in with a plan thanks to the coaching staff at her disposal last year, headed by Sanjay Bangar. A mix of domestic and overseas players made it the franchise's best season in IPL in seven years and now she believes there's a lot to look forward to once again.
She wants cricket to be the sole focus if her role in the franchise is highlighted anywhere. "I'm the only one among all the owners who doesn't come from a business background. I even went and attended some management courses to brush up on my skills. I didn't come into IPL because my husband is involved in it. I came in here because I am involved with it. So cut me some slack," she says as a matter of fact.
On Spot-fixing:
Preity Zinta says that with the spot-fixing controversy, one thing that became clear in IPL was that there was something disturbing and had to be looked into, which was the best part. "I'd like to believe that in order to deal with any problem, you have to first agree that there is a problem. So, now that this fact is sorted, I'm sure the IPL has reached a stage where these problems will be addressed. They need to be," she says.
On Shilpa Shetty:
It's sad that Shilpa's not going to be around. She's a good friend and a lovely girl who worked hard for her franchise ever since she came in.
On Kings XI's future:
The franchise is not for sale. I do admit that once, years ago, we came close to letting go of a small stake but the deal didn't go through. But neither the franchise nor its controlling stake is up for sale.
On Shahrukh Khan:
I love Shahrukh. After Kings XI lost the final last year, he came up to me, gave me the biggest hug and wore my team's jersey. Which team owner does that? He's a great guy.