'Agar umpire's call hua toh...': Kuldeep Yadav angrily clashes with on-field umpire, Axar Patel forced to calm him down

Kuldeep Yadav’s temper flared during the match against Gujarat Titans on Sunday night in Delhi, and the stump microphone caught just enough to hint at the extent of his frustration. Bowling the first delivery of his spell in Titans’ chase of 200, the Delhi Capitals wrist-spinner bowled a perfectly disguised wrong-’un that rapped Sai Sudharsan on the front pad. Kuldeep wheeled away in appeal, convinced he had cracked the 63-run opening stand that had put pressure on the Capitals. Kuldeep argues with on-field umpire during DC vs GT match(X)

The on-field umpire, however, stayed unmoved, prompting skipper Axar Patel to gamble a review. Kuldeep spun around and marched towards the umpire, gesturing animatedly over the on-field decision. On the stump-mic, he was heard muttering, “Agar umpire’s call hua toh…,” the rest drowned by the noise around the stadium. It was evident that the DC bowler was furious at the decision, as his teammates waited for the replays to be shown on the giant screen.

Replays confirmed pitch-in-line and impact-in-line and the crowd sensed the breakthrough. Then Hawk-Eye projected the ball skimming leg stump and the verdict slid to “umpire’s call”.

Watch:

The moment proved decisive. Sudharsan, reprieved on 29, settled in alongside Shubman Gill and methodically dismantled a flagging Capitals attack on an increasingly placid strip. By the 18th over, Sudharsan cruised to a 57-ball century, while Gill finished on a brilliant unbeaten 93 and the Titans coasted home by ten wickets with exactly an over to spare, securing their playoff berth.

For Kuldeep and DC it was a gut-punch after KL Rahul’s earlier heroics. Restored to the top of the order, Rahul’s unbeaten 112 (67 balls) had powered the hosts to 199/3, the partnerships with Abishek Porel (30 off 19), Axar Patel (25 off 16) and Tristan Stubbs (21* off 12) hinting at a total above par.

Yet on a surface that lost its early grip, Delhi’s bowling lacked bite. After a wary start, both Gill and Sudharsan dominated DC bowlers with textbook cricket shots, effectively taking the game away from the side by the half-way mark in the run-chase.

The result reverberates across the table. Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings joined the Titans in clinching playoff spots, leaving three sides – DC, Mumbai Indians and Lucknow Super Giants – jostling for the final ticket. For the Capitals the equation is now brutal: win both remaining fixtures and hope net run-rate favours them.

Click here to read article