Former India and current Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain MS Dhoni has been labelled ‘Captain Cool’ by fans and experts alike due to his icy demeanour on the field.
However, not even he was immune to the odd outburst – as many an eagle-eyed viewer could attest to. And perhaps nowhere was this more evident than in the 2019 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
During the 25th match of the tournament, which saw CSK take on Rajasthan Royals, CSK were chasing and at one point a ball was delivered that was clearly above the waist.
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However, the leg umpire did not signal for the no-ball and the decision was not checked upstairs. Yet when the replays were shown, it became evident that it was indeed a no-ball.
This led to the CSK batters animatedly arguing with the umpires over the call, but the biggest surprise of them all was when Dhoni himself marched on to the field to argue with the umpires!
Dhoni’s actions divided opinions – some called him a hero for standing up for his team, others pointed out that he was in breach of the rules and risked a ban.
In the end, he was not given a ban – yet, at the time of the incident, former India opener Virender Sehwag had made it clear that Dhoni should have been handed a ban of at least 2 to 3 games.
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“I feel Dhoni was let off easy and should have been banned for at least two or three games. Because if he did this, tomorrow another captain can do the same,” Sehwag had told Cricbuzz in 2019.
What’s more, he also said that this demeaned the value of an umpire and that Dhoni should have simply stayed away from the entire situation.
“Then what is the value of an umpire? I feel he shouldn’t have come to the ground when there are two (CSK) members already and they were equally inquisitive regarding the no-ball.”
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This was, in many ways, one of those instances where Dhoni escaped due to his reputation more than anything else.
He was not wrong in the point of his argument – especially after the big screen clearly showed that the ball was indeed over the waist of the batter.
However, getting into an argument with the umpires while not batting was a low point – and Dhoni avoided a ban only due to being Dhoni.
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