One of Rajasthan Royals owners slapped me across face 3-4 times: Ross Taylor's explosive claim
New Delhi, Aug 13: In a stunning revelation, former New Zealand batter Ross Taylor has claimed that he was "slapped" by one of the owners of Rajasthan Royals franchise during the 2011 season of the IPL.
The Kiwi said that he was slapped by the franchise's owner after he was dismissed for a duck during a game against Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) in Mohali.
Taylor made the revelation in his new autobiography, Ross Taylor: Black & White.
"The chase was 195, I was lbw for a duck and we didn't get close," Taylor wrote in his book, an excerpt of which was published on Stuff.co.nz.
"Afterwards, the team, support staff and management were in the bar on the top floor of the hotel. Liz Hurley was there with Warnie (Shane Warne).
"One of the Royals owners said to me, 'Ross, we didn't pay you a million dollars to get a duck,' and slapped me across the face three or four times. He was laughing and they weren't hard slaps but I'm not sure that it was entirely play-acting.
"Under the circumstances I wasn't going to make an issue of it, but I couldn't imagine it happening in many professional sporting environments."
The 38-year-old Taylor played for Royal Challengers Bangalore from 2008 to 2010 and was with RR in 2011. He also represented Delhi Capitals, then called Delhi Daredevils, as well as the now-defunct Pune Warriors India.
"When you fetch that sort of money, you're desperately keen to prove that you're worth it. And those who are paying you that sort of money have high expectations that's professional sport and human nature.
"I'd paid my dues at RCB: if I'd had a lean trot, the management would have had faith in me because of what I'd done in the past. When you go to a new team, you don't get that backing.
"You never feel comfortable because you know that if you go two or three games without a score, you come under cold-eyed scrutiny."
The autobiography made headlines after Taylor claimed he experienced racism during his 16-year career with the New Zealand team.
Taylor, who is of Samoan heritage, had described racist locker room "banter" and casually racist comments from some New Zealand team officials.
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ED attaches Anil Ambani's 'Abode' worth Rs 3,716 crore in PMLA case
New Delhi (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday said it has attached Reliance Group chairman Anil Ambani's Mumbai house, 'Abode', worth Rs 3,716 crore under the anti-money laundering law.
The attachment comes a day before Ambani, 66, is expected to appear before the federal probe agency here for his second round of questioning on Thursday in a case linked to the alleged bank loan fraud involving Reliance Communications (RCOM).
The luxurious house, which is stated to be 66-metre high with 17 floors, is located in the Pali Hill area of Mumbai.
A provisional order has been issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to attach the multi-storeyed house in the case linked to an alleged bank fraud by Ambani's group company RCOM, the federal probe agency said in a statement.
It stated that the value of the attached asset was Rs 3,716.83 crore.
A part of this property, worth Rs 473.17 crore, was similarly attached by the ED in November, 2025.
RCOM and its group companies availed loans from domestic and foreign lenders with a total outstanding of Rs 40,185 crore, as per the ED.
An email sent by PTI to the Reliance Group seeking comment on the development remained unanswered.
The ED issues a provisional attachment order against an immovable or movable asset to prevent the accused from transacting, selling, or transferring it during the investigation.
Once the PMLA Adjudicating Authority confirms this order within the stipulated 180 days, the ED can confiscate the property and, in the case of a house, ask residents to vacate it.
Probe found that, among other assets, the Pali Hill property (Abode) was aggregated into the RiseE Trust, a private family trust of the members of Ambani's family.
"This was done to make it appear as though Mr Anil Ambani is not involved. The intended effect of this corporate restructuring was to ensure wealth preservation and resource generation by aggregation of the property in the RiseE Trust and shield it from the personal liabilities of Mr Anil Ambani in the form of Personal Guarantees extended by him to lender banks against the loans sanctioned to RCOM," the agency claimed.
It added that the property was intended to be "beneficially" used and owned by the Anil Ambani family and not for the distressed public banks whose loans became non-performing assets (NPAs).
With the latest order, the total value of the attachment in this case stands at about Rs 15,700 crore.
Ambani is expected to appear before the federal probe agency here for his second round of questioning on Thursday.
He first deposed before the ED in August 2025 and had his statement recorded under the PMLA.
The agency recently constituted a special investigation team to probe multiple cases of alleged bank fraud and linked financial irregularities against the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) on the directions of the Supreme Court.
