The IPL is the cricketing feat that keeps the entire country hooked in this pandemic time. There is a lot of fervor surrounding the tournament in India, and every little thing that happens on the field is scrutinized heavily by pundits and fans.
In its 14-year history, the IPL has also had some umpiring decisions that were dubious and created controversies. And, some of these decisions have even gone on to have an effect on the result of the match as well! ---
That’s a No Ball Malinga!
Lasith Malinga in IPL 2019
Let us travel to 28th March 2019 to the encounter between Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore to delve deeper into this incident.
Off the last delivery of the innings, the Virat Kohli-led side needed 7 runs to win, and Shivam Dube was the batsman on strike. Malinga overstepped off the last ball of the match, but the umpire failed to notice it. Dube hit the ball towards Long On, and the batsmen did not run. Now, if the no-ball was awarded, a run would have been added to the RCB total, the final delivery would have been re bowled again and a Free Hit would have been awarded as well. And, if the no-ball had been called early by the umpire, the batsmen might have even crossed and De Villiers might have faced the final delivery. And who knows, in such a high-pressure situation and in the form that De Villiers was in, the result of the match might have been different.
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The umpire wilts under ‘Mahi pressure’
David Warner, MS Dhoni, and Paul Reifell on a wide ball decision in IPL 2020
This was an incident that took place in the 29th match of the 2020 IPL edition between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Sun Risers Hyderabad (SRH). The CSK outfit won the toss and decided to get their willows out. Led by Shane Watson’s 38-ball 42 and a blazing 25* off just 10 deliveries by Ravindra Jadeja, the ‘Men in Yellow’ scored 167.
In reply, the SRH batsmen failed to step up. Off the second ball of the 19th over, Shardul Thakur bowled a delivery that swung away from the batsman. The ball was clearly past the wide line, and the umpire was about to extend his arms to signal a wide. But then, CSK skipper MS Dhoni was not happy with it. Dhoni immediately gestured towards the umpire in anger, as if questioning the decision, and this gesture was enough for the umpire to change his decision. A delivery that went past the wide line was not given as a wide, due to the pressure exerted by the CSK legend.
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The no-ball replay that caused a stir
Jasprit Bumrah in a match between RCB and MI
This was an absolute blunder that grabbed the attention of the cricketing world. On 17th April 2018, Mumbai Indians (MI) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) locked horns in a league match. The Mumbai outfit batted first and piled up a colossal total of 213 runs on the board, with skipper Rohit Sharma scoring 94 off just 52 deliveries.
In reply, in spite of a brilliant 92* from the legendary Virat Kohli, the RCB side could manage to score just 167. But then, off the last ball of the 18th over of RCB’s innings, there was an umpiring error, and it was a blatant one. Jasprit Bumrah bowled a short delivery, and Umesh Yadav swung the bat wildly. The ball took the outside edge of his willow and went straight to Rohit Sharma, who completed the catch.
But then, the umpire was not sure about the legitimacy of the delivery and wanted to make sure that Bumrah’s foot was behind the crease and the delivery was a fair one. The replays confirmed that it was a fair delivery. So, what was the problem?
The problem was, in the replay that was shown, Umesh Yadav was not the man on strike. The third umpire had actually seen the replay of some other delivery, where Yadav was clearly seen standing at the opposite end (non-striker’s end) next to Bumrah. Yes, mistakes happen in sport. But this was one occasion where the third umpire was totally careless.
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That’s over the waist, clearly!
Kane Williamson of SRH plays a shot on Shardul Thakur’s delivery
Kane Williamson was at the receiving end of a poor decision from the leg umpire. And, when a match goes down to the wire and a side is defeated by just 4 runs, these errors become extremely costly. This incident took place on 22nd April 2018, in an encounter betweenChennai Super Kingsand Sun Risers Hyderabad (SRH). On the second ball of the 17th over of the SRH innings, Shardul Thakur bowled a delivery that was above Williamson’s waist. But, to everyone’s surprise, the leg umpire declared that it was a fair delivery. He could have referred the decision to the third umpire to get more clarity, but he refused to do so.
A no-ball would have not only meant that the SRH side would have got an extra delivery, but it would have also meant that the ‘Orange Army’ would have also got a Free Hit. But due to an error from the leg umpire, the CSK side got away with it.
As far as the match is concerned, the Chennai outfit batted first and scored 183 runs on the board. The main contributor for the ‘Yellow Brigade’ was Ambati Rayudu, who scored a rampaging 79 at a strike rate of 213.51. In reply, the SRH side finished with a total of 178/6 in their allotted 20 overs and lost a humdinger of a clash in spite of Williamson’s classy 84.
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A wrong short-run call changes the result of a match!
Short run.
December 2020. The match went into the Super Over, and the Delhi outfit won the match. But then, a wrong short-run call was made off the third ball of the 19th over of the Punjab innings.
Mayank Agarwal ran a couple off that delivery, but the umpire called a short run as he felt that Chris Jordan’s bat had not crossed the line. But then, replays showed that Jordan had completed the run, as the bat was clearly past the crease. This created a huge controversy, as this decision completely changed the result of the match.
In fact, Indian batting legend Virender Sehwag cheekily suggested that the umpire who made the decision of awarding the short run should be declared as the Man of the Match.
I don’t agree with the man of the match choice . The umpire who gave this short run should have been man of the match. Short Run nahin tha. And that was the difference.
Let us get into the facts of the match. The Delhi Capitals (DC) batted first and posted 157/8 on the board.
The Punjab Kings’ innings was about one man, Mayank Agarwal. The opener plundered a 60 ball 89 but did not receive any support from his teammates.
The Punjab side too, finished with exactly the same total, 157/8.
But then, in the Super Over, it was the Delhi outfit that came out on top. In the Super Over, the Punjab Kings managed to score just 2 runs, and the Delhi side chased it down with ease and won the match. But then, if the short-run call was not made, the match would have not even gone to the Super Over, isn’t it?
These controversies have highlighted the discrepancy in the umpiring standards in the tournament and the quality of umpires as well.
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