5 Umpiring blunders in IPL history
The Indian Premier League hosts some of the best cricketers across the globe. However, the standard of umpiring has been a major concern, with fans and critics both having issues with it. A small error in judgement can and has cost teams entire matches. In this article, we look at 5 major blunders in the history of the star-studded league.
5. MI vs RCB (2019)
It was the much-awaited clash between the teams captained by India’s top 2 limited-overs batsmen at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore. With 7 runs required off the final delivery, star-bowler Lasith Malinga bowled a no-ball. However, on-field umpires S Ravi and CK Nandan failed to call it, and RCB lost the match by 5 runs. After looking at the replays on the big screen, Kohli and co were furious. He expressed his disappointment in the post-match interview, lashing out at the poor standards of umpiring in the league.
4. KXIP vs DC (2020)
This was the 2nd match of the Indian Premier League 2020. A short-run was called on the 3rd ball of the penultimate over by on-field umpires Nitin Menon and Anil Chaudhary. With KXIP needing 21 off 10 deliveries to defeat Delhi Capitals, Chris Jordan was called for a short run by Menon, which meant that only one run was added to Punjab’s total. The match ended in a tie, which went on to the first super over of IPL 2020 and DC went on to register their first win of the tournament. However, replays cleared that Jordan had completed the run and the short-run call was wrong.
3. CSK vs RR (2019)
This all-important game took place in Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. CSK needed 18 runs in the final over while chasing 151 on a slow track. Dhoni got out after scoring 58 off 43 balls in the 3rd ball of the over. Ben Stokes bowled a beamer, and umpire Ulhas Gandhe signalled it a no-ball without consulting the square-leg umpire Bruce Oxenford. However, they reversed the decision after a few seconds. MS Dhoni then stormed onto the field and had a heated discussion. Eventually, Oxenford’s decision prevailed, and it wasn’t eventually called a no-ball.
2. KXIP vs KKR (2018)
This encounter took place in Eden Gardens. Kings XI Punjab won the toss and elected to field first. Andrew Tye was brought into the attack in the final over of the Powerplay. His very first ball was called a no-ball. However, when it was noticed on the big screen, the decision called was incorrect and harsh on the bowler, for he was penalized for no fault of his own. The decision did not end up having a significant impact on the result of the game.
1. MI vs SRH (2017)
This match took place in Wankhede, where Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to field first. In the 6th over, David Warner hit a boundary off Mitchell McCleneghan in the last delivery. However, he took the strike in the next over. All the umpires and the match officials ended up overlooking it. Only after the commentators noticed it, then the viewers were aware of this incident. This could have been a major blunder had it affected the result of the game majorly.
