Virender Sehwag slams IPL umpire
The second match of the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) between DC and KXIP at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium had it all. Mayank Agarwal's valiant knock went in vain as Delhi Capitals edged past Kings XI Punjab in the Super Over.
Mayank Agarwal's gutsy 89 off 60 balls kept the opposition at bay while wickets kept tumbling at the other end. This thriller of an IPL game was also marred by a controversial decision by square-leg umpire Nitin Menon and the issue has started to boil over.
Punjab took the game out of Delhi's hands, as they only needed a run off the final 3 deliveries. Punjab went into the last over needing 13 runs and Agarwal smashed 12 off the first three balls to tie the contest. Marcus Stoinis bowled a dot and took consecutive wickets to send the match into a Super Over.
Punjab only managed two runs in Kagiso Rabada's brilliant Super Over and Delhi emerged victorious.
The shine from the Capitals' first win of the IPL season is being taken away by a dubious umpiring decision as the umpire's controversial call literally cost Punjab their first IPL game of the season. KXIP needed 21 off the final 10 balls when the incident occurred. Chris Jordan played towards long-on and ran a couple off Rabada's third ball.
Jordan was declared a 'run short' by ICC's Nitin Menon when replays showed otherwise. The TV replays showed that Jordan legally completed the first run and the bat was inside the crease. But Menon's howler meant only one run was added to the KXIP total. If the run had been allowed, KXIP would have won the match inside the actual 20 overs and made a good start to IPL 2020.
Former India captain Virender Sehwag lashed out at Menon. The batsman sarcastically tweeted, "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."
Former Indian Opener Aakash Chopra and former Delhi Daredevils coach Trent Woodhill also made their feelings known on Twitter about the controversial IPL incident.
"One short that wasn’t. Technology must take over in these cases.....but that’s possible if only the third umpire spotted it in time. What if #KXIP don’t make it to the final four by 2 points?? Tight #IPL2020 is likely to be," tweeted Chopra.
KXIP co-owner Preity Zinta also reacted through Twitter as her team was at the receiving end of a controversial umpiring call.
She retweeted, "I travelled enthusiastically during a pandemic, did 6 days of Quarantine & 5covid tests with a smile but that one Short Run hit me hard. What’s the point of technology if it cannot be used? It’s time @BCCI introduces new rules. This cannot happen every year."
"I’ve always believed in being graceful in a win or loss & in the spirit of the game but it’s also important to ask for policy changes that improve the game in the future for everyone. The past has happened and it’s imp to move on. So Looking ahead & being positive as always," urged Preity Zinta.
Delhi are off to a winning start and will face the Chennai Super Kings next in the IPL while Punjab move on to face Royal Challengers Bangalore. KXIP will feel that they could have won their opening match despite the controversial umpiring decision.