"Maybe, some people are bigger than the law" - When former umpire Daryl Harper accused MS Dhoni of time-wasting
MS Dhoni is among the most revered figures in world cricket. However, being a sporting superstar, it is impossible to completely stay away from controversies. The case is no different with Dhoni.
The Indian cricket legend was accused of time-wasting by former International Cricket Council (ICC) Elite Panel umpire Daryl Harper during the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season. Dhoni was leading Chennai Super Kings (CSK) last year and was seen arguing with on-field umpires during Qualifier 1 against Gujarat Titans (GT) in Chennai.
CSK went on to win the match by 15 runs as Gujarat Titans failed to chase a target of 173. Dhoni's antics were, however, criticized by some as he stopped play before the start of the 16th over in GT's chase. He wanted pacer Matheesha Pathirana to bowl the over, but the umpires told him that the Sri Lankan bowler had spent nine minutes outside the field, so he would be ineligible to bowl immediately.
Following a lengthy discussion between the CSK captain and the on-field umpires, which lasted for over four minutes, Pathirana was allowed to bowl the 16th over. Harper, however, was unimpressed by how things panned out. Speaking to mid-day, he questioned Dhoni's behavior and commented:
"Dhoni wasted time to allow his preferred bowling option to deliver the vital 16th over. That’s the only conclusion that I can draw from that disappointing spectacle."
“The issue for me is the lack of respect shown for the spirit of cricket and for the directions of the umpires. There were other [bowling] options for the captain, but they were ignored. Maybe, some people are bigger than the law or in this case, the spirit of cricket. It’s always disappointing to see the lengths that some people will go to in order to win," he went on to add.
Set to chase 173 by CSK in Qualifier 1, GT were all-out for 157 as Deepak Chahar, Maheesh Theekshana, Ravindra Jadeja, and Pathirana claimed two wickets each.
MS Dhoni-led CSK went on to beat GT in a thrilling IPL 2023 final
Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans met again in the final of IPL 2023 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. In a thrilling summit clash played across two days due to rain, CSK beat GT by five wickets (DLS method) off the last ball of the match.
Batting first Gujarat put up 214-4 as Sai Sudharsan slammed a brilliant 96 off 47 balls. Chasing a revised target of 171 in 15 overs, Devon Conway smacked 47 off 25. With 10 needed off two balls, Jadeja hit Mohit Sharma for a six and a four to pull off an incredible win for CSK.