IPL Dugout Special : Arguments, Drama and Gossips

(DC vs RR) Rishabh Pant: calling players back from the field

Delhi Capitals needed 36 runs in the final over while Rovman Powell and Kuldeep Yadav were present at the crease. The pacer Obed McCoy delivered a whole toss ball, which according to the skipper, was no-ball, but the umpire misjudged it. This left Pant furious, and he threatened to forfeit the match, asking both the players to leave the field. 

Things didn't end here. Jos Buttler standing at the boundary, was seen having a heated altercation with Rishabh Pant. Buttler was highly furious and didn't shy away from expressing himself.

"I thought the no-ball could have been precious for us. I thought we could have checked that no-ball, but it's not in my control. Yes, disappointed, but can't do much about it. Everyone was frustrated because it was not even close, so I thought it was only a no-ball. Everyone on the ground saw that. I think the third umpire should have intervened in between and said it was a no-ball, but I can't change the rule myself I guess," said Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant

On the situation, former Pakistan skipper Shoaib Akhtar said, "With Rishabh Pant, he is a kid, a youngster. My advice to him is that whenever such a scenario arises, always show grace. I felt that it was a childish mistake from Pant. He is a kid. He's just become the captain, is passionate… there is no doubt about it. He is extremely talented. He his entire career ahead of him. Shane Watson was trying to save him from controversy."

Sanju Samson argues with the umpire over the wide ball; Takes DRS

Lots of controversies involving umpires came to light this season. One such incident occurred with Rajasthan Royals against Gujarat Titans, where Prasidh Krishna was bowling to Rinku Singh. The batter attempted to uppercut the ball over the third man, and the delivery was called wide. Following this, skipper Sanju Samson called for a review mocking the umpire's call.

Former New Zealand captain and Royal Challenger's Banglore coach Daniel Vettori called for a change to the DRS protocols, "I don't think there was any thought of it actually being out."

However, commentator Harsha Bhogle defended the umpire by quoting, "There have been a lot of comments on no-balls and wides on my timeline. I would urge most of you to do a simple search for the laws, and you would discover that the umpires have been more right than wrong. And if we start referring everything, we will have 5 hour games!"

Gautam Gambhir berating LSG players after a defeat from GT

Lucknow Super Giants mentor Gautam Gambhir lashed out at his players after a humiliating defeat against Gujarat Titans on 10th May. LSG bowlers did a fantastic job in restricting Titans to 144. However, LSG batters got bundled out for 82, making it their worst defeat. 

In the video shared by LSG, Gambhir said, "There's nothing wrong in losing. It's absolutely fine. There's a lot wrong in giving up."

He further added, "Today...I thought that we gave up. We were weak. Honestly, there's no place for being weak in a tournament like IPL. That is where the problem is. We have beaten teams in this competition, we have played really good cricket, but Today I thought we lacked the game sense."

Riyan Parag - Harshal Patel: Clash of ego

Harshal Patel and Riyan Parag had a moment of heat exchange between the two in a clash between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Rajasthan Royals. It all looked to have started in the final over of the first innings, being bowled by Harshal Patel. The 20-year-old batter Riyan Parag dominated the over to smash the bowler for six, and a spat started between the two. A RR member had to intervene to stop the matter from escalating. Adding to the feud, The right-arm pacer did not shake hands with Riyan Parag. The cold gesture came against sportsmanship behaviour, and Twitter soon flooded with views against the bowler.

DRS unavailable CSK vs MI

MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings suffered a shocking batting line-up collapse against Mumbai Indians. The unavailability of the Decision Review System (DRS) for the first ten balls due to a high-voltage clash left fans and viewers in anguish. This came as a massive blow to CSK openers, as Devon Conway and Robin Uthappa were dismissed before the system was restored, and they didn't have any power to review the decision. 

Former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag criticized the situation by saying, "Is the generator exclusively for stadium lighting and not for the broadcasters' equipment? DRS should have been utilized if the contest was still going on. Or DRS should not have been utilized throughout the game."

Harsha Bhogle defended the situation, "When you lose power, the generators come on automatically, and that is how the coverage continues. But some machines need to reboot, and that takes time, and that is when DRS is unavailable. This is the situation all over the world. It has nothing to do with budgets or planning." 

This further invited a lot of criticism from CSK fans.

Shreyas Iyer argues with head coach Brendon McCullum

In a fixture of Kolkata Knight Riders against Rajasthan Royals, skipper Shreyas Iyer put up a brave fight in match number 30 to keep them in the race till the end. Shreyas smashed 85 off 51 and almost managed to chase the target but fell seven runs short of 218. When Iyer was on his way back to the pavilion, he was furious because of a decision by coach Brendon McCullum outside the dugout to send Shivam Mavi before Pat Cummins. This made skipper Shreyas Iyer disappointed and thus get angry at Coach McCullum.

CSK and Ravindra Jadeja unfollowing each other on social media sparks rumours

Indian all-rounder, Ravindra Jadeja, who has been an integral part of Chennai Super Kings for nearly ten years, was unfollowed by the franchise on the social media platform. He has also been ruled out of the ongoing season of IPL due to bruised ribs. The sudden ruling out of the all-rounder sparked a rift between the two. 

CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan cleared the air and stated, "Social media, I absolutely do not follow anything. I have no knowledge of what is going on there. What I can tell you is that from the management side, there has been no problem, and whatever is there on social media, I'm not aware of. Jadeja firmly remains in the CSK's scheme of things for the future, always," 

A massive statement from Aakash Chopra added spark to the controversy on his Youtube channel. He said, "For Chennai, I had said that Jadeja won't play the match and I have a feeling he might not be there next year too," Chopra said on his YouTube channel. 

He added, "This happens a lot in the CSK camp that there is no clarity on injuries and then a player doesn't play. I remember it was in 2021 that Suresh Raina played till a point and after that things came to an end, That's it, TATA. So, I don't know what is the case with Jaddu (Jadeja), but his absence will be a problem for CSK,"

Rohit Sharma dismissal: Spike even before ball reaching bat

While this edition has seen so many controversial dismissals and umpiring decisions, Rohit Sharma, too, became the victim of one such dismissal against Kolkata Knight Riders. On the last ball of the first over by Tim Southee, the ball went past closer to the edge of the skipper's bat, hitting a high thigh pad before landing in the wicketkeeper's hand. The on-field decision was not out, overturned by the third umpire on review by KKR due to the spike seen on Ultra Edge. However, it left fans furious as there seemed to be some glitch because a spike was seen before the ball reached the bat. 

Fans tweeted, "How can the third umpire not see what we saw? Rohit was NOT OUT #MIvsKKR”

Another fan wrote, "Ultraedge showed spike even before the ball passed near the bat. Unlucky for Rohit Sharma."

Virat Kohli LBW controversy

In the 18th match of IPL 2022, between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians, an LBW decision against Virat Kohli infuriated fans and viewers. Virat Kohli looked in decent form after a long time; however, in the 18th, Dewald Brevis bowled a delivery in which the ball came close in between pad and bat. The on-field umpire gave out; Kohli, sure it touched bat first, took review; however, the decision went against him. After dismissal, he seemed gutted as he smashed the bat while walking back.

Indian commentator Aakash Chopra tweeted, "In the case of ball hitting the bat and pad at the same time… it's considered bat first. As far as I know. Let's check the laws…."

Even RCB's official handle took to Twitter and stated the same law from the MCC rule book justifying Virat Kohli's anguish.

Bails controversy (Yuzvendra Chahal- David Warner)

In the 58th match of IPL between Delhi Capitals and Rajasthan Royals, David Warner had a massive piece of luck in the 9th over, being bowled by leggie Yuzvendra Chahal. The last ball above went past the bat and brushed the leg stump. The intensity was sufficient to light the stumps; however, bails failed to dislodge, a requirement for a clean bowled dismissal. And thus, Warner remained not out and scored an unbeaten 52 to seal the win for Delhi Capitals.

On this, former cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar expressed, "I've said this before as well, it's redundant now with the LED stumps to have the bails on. Today it would've been a wicket deserving for Chahal who bowled superbly. It was a terrible shot from Warner, and it didn't get a wicket. Unless it's adding an aesthetic value, they should just get rid of the bails because they're completely redundant with LED technology,"

Further explaining the problem with bails, Manjrekar said, "If you have the technology, don't have the bails. The other problem with bails is, when there is stumping, you wait for it to light up and then you're talking about whether both the bails are off the grooves and there's just a lot of complication when you're judging stumped or run out. Just keep it simple."