An unusual sight occurred during Sunday's (April 13) 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) match between the Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur when the umpire was seen assessing Simron Hetmyer's bat size after he had gone out to bat. Hetmyer stepped out to bat at number five for the Royals after Yashasvi Jaiswal was removed on the final ball of the 16th over.
He joined Dhruv Jurel in the middle as the home team sought a speedy conclusion. Nevertheless, the game was briefly stopped as the umpire used a bat gauge to determine whether Hetmyer's bat size was within permitted bounds. Later, before RCB's innings with ace opening batsman Phil Salt, the umpire went through the process again.
In order to determine whether the West Indies star bat size complied with the league's approved playing regulations, the on-field umpire made the choice to check it. In accordance with IPL playing conditions law 5.7:
- "The overall length of the bat, when the lower portion of the handle is inserted, shall not be more than 38 in/96.52 cm.
- The blade of the bat shall not exceed the following dimensions:
- Width: 4.25in / 10.8 cm
- Depth: 2.64in / 6.7 cm
- Edges: 1.56in / 4.0cm.
- Furthermore, it should also be able to pass through a bat gauge as described in paragraph 1.6 of
- The handle shall not exceed 52% of the overall length of the bat.
- The material permitted for covering the blade in clause 5.4.1 shall not exceed 0.04 in/0.1 cm in
- thickness.
- The maximum permitted thickness of protective material placed on the toe of the blade is 0.12
- in/0.3 cm,"
In a match against Nottinghamshire last season, Essex was given a 12-point penalty after hitter Feroze Khushi failed an on-field bat size check, sparking a huge controversy. When the check occurred, the guy was batting at 21 (in 27 balls), and he was instructed to switch bats. The team lost their opportunity to play for the championship versus Surrey as a result of this punishment.
Essex would have been third in the table had it not been for the penalty, but they ultimately finished fourth. Hetmyer's bat held up well in today's game. The IPL's playing rules make no mention of a point penalty, and if the RR star's bat did not comply with the rules, he probably would have simply been asked to switch bats.