A moment of fury unfolded in the Delhi Capitals camp on Saturday evening during the final phase of their chase against Chennai Super Kings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. DC player Nitish Rana was seen in a heated argument with the fourth umpire, which was soon followed by another outburst inside the dressing room.
The incident occurred in the 19th over when Delhi batter Tristan Stubbs requested a change of gloves. He appeared uncomfortable with the pair he was using and, with the visitors still holding a faint chance of chasing down 32 runs off 12 balls, sought a replacement.
Rana was ready to step onto the field with a spare set of gloves but was stopped by the umpire. As per IPL regulations, a batter can only change equipment at the start or end of an over, meaning Stubbs’ mid-over request was denied. The decision left Rana visibly furious, with Karun Nair and head coach Hemang Badani also present during the exchange.
The frustration escalated moments later when Stubbs was dismissed on the very next ball. Attempting to loft a cross-seam delivery from Jamie Overton, he found Noor Ahmad at mid-off and departed for 60 off 38 balls. Clearly upset, Stubbs flung his helmet in frustration upon returning to the dressing room.
His dismissal effectively ended Delhi’s hopes of a comeback. Chennai had already been penalised for a slow over-rate, forcing them to keep an extra fielder inside the circle, but the target — 28 required off the final over — proved too steep. Anshul Kamboj struck twice in the last over as Delhi were restricted to 189.
Rana punished
Rana was subsequently penalised for his conduct. He was found guilty of breaching Article 2.3 of the IPL Code of Conduct, which pertains to the “use of an audible obscenity during a match.” He was fined 25 per cent of his match fee and handed one demerit point.
Rana admitted to the offence and accepted the Match Referee’s sanction.
