Hyderabad: Varun Chakravarthy has added fuel to growing chatter around a no-ball call from the third umpire during the clash between Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday, April 17.
The incident happened when Mumbai Indians' wicketkeeper-batter Ryan Rickelton was called back to bat despite being holed out at covers by Pat Cummins, bowled by leggie Zeeshan Ansari. He was ruled not out not because of an error by the bowler, but due to a mistake by the wicket-keeper Heinrich Klassen.
If the keeper's gloves come in front of the stumps, it should be a dead ball and a warning to the keeper so that he doesn't do that again !!! Not a no ball and a free hit!! What did the bowler do🙄🙄
— Varun Chakaravarthy🇮🇳 (@chakaravarthy29) April 17, 2025
Thinking out loud!! What do u all think???
Mumbai got off to a decent start in a chase of a modest 163-run target. Rickelton, then batting on 21 off 18 balls, was walking towards the dressing room, but the third intervened and overturned the decision, and as a result, the southpaw was recalled to bat.
A moment after the drama unfolded, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) spinner Chakravarthy reflected his views on the matter. The leg-spinner explicitly said that in such cases, the umpire should call it a dead ball as there's no fault of a bowler.
"If the keeper's gloves come in front of the stumps, it should be a dead ball and a warning to the keeper so that he doesn't do that again !!! Not a no-ball and a free hit!! What did the bowler do???? Thinking out loud!! What do u all think???" Chakravarthy wrote on his X handle.
As per current Law 27.3 of the MCC code, a wicketkeeper is required to remain entirely behind the stumps at the striker’s end until the ball either touches the bat or passes the stumps. If the keeper moves out of position too early—even by a fraction—it’s deemed a breach of the law, and the umpire must declare the delivery a no-ball.
Although Rickelton was dismissed in the following over for 31 off 23 by Harshal Patel, the earlier moment continued to stir conversations. Eventually, Mumbai secured their third victory of the IPL 2025 quite comfortably while SRH suffered their fifth defeat.
