During Friday's Indian Premier League (IPL) match between Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Delhi Capitals (DC), the latter were engrossed in a massive chase, needing 36 off the last over chasing 223 runs. West Indies’ Rovman Powell went after the bowler Obed McCoy, slamming him for three back-to-back sixes, reducing the equation to 18 off 3 balls. But then a wrong decision by the umpire turned the match on its head.
The Capitals were convinced that the third ball, which was also dispatched for a maximum, was chest-high no-ball and must be called so, which meant not only an extra run but also a free hit. In their frustration, skipper Rishabh Pant protested the umpire's call and also asked the batters to come back to the dugout. He even asked assistant coach Praveen Amre to rush to the field. His reaction earned the wrath of many cricket pundits.
Meanwhile, the incident stunned the whole cricket world. In the latest reactions, Australia and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) Glenn Maxwell took a dig at the umpires on Twitter for not checking the chest-high no-ball. "So umpires check no balls for front foot every ball, but can’t check a high full toss? Makes sense…” he tweeted.
In response to Maxwell's claim, Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Maxwell’s New Zealand rival James Neesham came out with a tweet, saying that it wasn’t a no-ball. “knee-high,” he said, implying that it wasn’t a no-ball.
In response to Pant's actions in the dugout, both him and Pravin Amre were penalised 100% of their match fees, with the latter also getting a three-match ban. Bowler Shardul Thakur was also fined 50 per cent of his match fee for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct during the match.
