The third season of the Women’s Premier League (WPL), or Women’s IPL, began two days ago. In the second match held yesterday, Delhi Capitals won a thrilling match against Mumbai Indians on the last ball. To win, Delhi needed 2 runs on the final delivery, they managed to take those runs. However, confusion has arisen over whether it was a run-out or not. There has been controversy surrounding the decisions of two run-outs during the entire match.
On the last ball of the second innings, Delhi’s Arundhati Reddy ran after lifting the ball over the cover region. In their attempt to take two runs, Mumbai’s captain Harmanpreet Kaur threw the ball toward the wicketkeeper. Arundhati dived to reach the crease. After a long review, the third umpire declared her not out. As a result, Delhi won. However, some have claimed that when Harmanpreet’s throw hit the stumps, Arundhati’s bat was not completely inside the crease; it was “on the line.” The third umpire likely did not give her out because the bails did not come off, even though the stumps’ bails had lit up.
There is also controversy regarding the fifth ball of the 19th over in Delhi’s innings, where a run-out was not given. Delhi’s two batters, Niki Prasad and Radha Yadav, found themselves in a head-on situation. Both were looking at the ball , started running, when suddenly Radha turned back. By then, Niki had almost reached her. If the ball had been thrown to the non-striker’s end, Delhi would have definitely lost a wicket. However, the throw was directed to the striker’s end. To save the wicket, Radha dived, but her bat was raised off the ground when she tried to reach the crease.
As a result, Mumbai players appealed for the run-out. It was seen that when Radha was attempting to reach the crease, her bat was raised and not touching the ground. Although the third umpire declared her not out, some have claimed that when the LED stumps’ lights came on, Radha’s bat was in the air. According to the rules of the Women’s IPL, that should have definitely been given as out.
Criticizing the decision, Royal Challengers Bangalore coach Mike Hesson said, “I’m not sure why the umpire decided tonight (yesterday) that the zinger bails (electronic) rule was not applicable. If the bails’ light comes on, it means the stumps have been broken. That’s the playing condition. Such confusion in the final 10 minutes of the match is something I’ve never seen before.”
Former Australian star Lisa Sthalekar also shared the same opinion. She said, “Did I misunderstand the rule? Were those two run-outs or not?”
However, Delhi’s owner Parth Jindal praised the third umpire amidst the controversy. He said, “Whatever the result of this WPL, I must certainly praise the third umpire. He is world-class. Making such decisions under so much pressure and going back through so many frames in the replay is truly world-class.”
LND/SAKIB
