On Thursday, Rohit Sharma-led Mumbai Indians defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in a humdinger, soon after the win, a controversy triggered as Lasith Malinga, who bowled the final over, ended up bowling a front-foot no-ball on the last delivery of the match. With 7 needed off the final delivery, RCB all-rounder Shivam Dube worked the last ball towards long-on. As Mumbai players broke into a huge celebration, the big screen soon showed that Malinga was having his foot beyond the line, but it went unnoticed by the umpires.
Before the post-match presentation, Virat Kohli was looking furious on the big screen and he even expressed his displeasure even at the presentation ceremony. However, as per the reports in Times Now, some of the eyewitnesses said that the RCB captain barged inside the match referee’s room where he used abusive language and cursed as well. Kohli is also said to have told the referee that he doesn’t care if he is penalized for violating the code of conduct.
WATCH – Umpire Missed The Crucial No-ball Of Lasith Malinga
After such an act, there are chances that some sort of action will be taken against Kohli and even RCB will surely be losing points in the fair playlist as well. It is possible for the first time in the history of the tournament that a player has barged into a match referee’s room after the match to express his annoyance.
When asked about the no-ball, Kohli said at the post-match presentation, “We are playing at IPL level, not club cricket. That is just a ridiculous call off the last ball. The umpires should have their eyes open, it was a no-ball by an inch. It is a completely different game altogether [if there was the extra delivery]. They should have been sharper and more careful out there.”
MI skipper Rohit Sharma agreed to the fact that such incidents weren’t good for cricket. He said, “Honestly, I just got to know after crossing the rope that it was a no-ball. These kind of mistakes are not good for the game.”
Batting first, Mumbai Indians posted a challenging 188-run total on board. In reply, AB de Villiers’ 41-ball 70 wasn’t even sufficient to taken Bangalore over the line as they were left stranded at 181/5.
