Cricket Fraternity Divided Over Virat Kohli's Dismissal In KKR vs RCB IPL 2024 Clash - WATCH

Former Indian cricketers, Navjot Singh Sidhu and Irfan Pathan held opposite perspectives when it came to umpire's decision of out for Virat Kohli during the KKR vs RCB IPL 2024 match on April 21.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) went down against their arch-rivals Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by 1 run in what turned out to be an action-packed thriller match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 at the Eden Gardens Stadium on April 21. This was RCB’s seventh defeat in their eight IPL 2024 matches so far. What caught a fair bit of attention in the KKR vs RCB match was a controversial moment involving RCB star Virat Kohli and the match umpires after his dismissal.

In RCB's chase of 223, Kohli was ‘controversially’ dismissed for 18 off 7 balls in the third over. He was caught and bowled by Harshit Rana off a high full toss, with Kohli playing the ball well outside his crease. Despite the delivery being above waist height when Kohli’s bat made contact with it, it appeared to be a slower ball that seemed to dip on the batter.

Was Virat Kohli Really Out?

Ahead of the IPL 2024 season, the height to the waist of each player was measured. Utilizing this information, the waist-high no-ball rule was tailored to each player individually. A player's height, their positioning within the crease, and whether their knees are bent or not, all play a role in determining whether an umpire calls a waist-high no-ball.

TV umpire Michael Gough reviewed the legality of the delivery for its height. According to the new Hawk-Eye ball tracking technology, if Kohli had been upright at the crease, the ball would have passed the batter at a height of 0.92 meters from the ground. Kohli's waist height had been measured at 1.04 meters beforehand, indicating that the ball would have passed below his waist had he been within his crease and not outside it. This assessment deemed the delivery to be legal.

Mixed Reactions From Cricket Experts

Former India cricketers, Navjot Singh Sidhu and Irfan Pathan had opposite reactions to the incident with Sidhu expressing disapproval of the umpire's decision, while Pathan supported it.

Kohli, visibly discontent with the decision, was observed expressing his dissatisfaction to the on-field umpire. Faf du Plessis, the non-striker, also seemingly shared Kohli's belief that the delivery should have been deemed a no-ball due to its height.