‘That’s more concerning to me than the umpire call, the behavior of Delhi’: Kevin Pietersen slams Delhi on the no-ball controversy

Delhi and Rajasthan locked horns in the 34^th match of the Indian T20 League 2022 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The pitch was a belter and batters from both the teams made the most of the conditions. The affair turned out to be a run-fest with 429 runs being scored in the match.

Rajasthan batted first in the match and on the back of Jos Buttler’s brilliant century, they posted a huge total of 222 runs in their 20 overs. Delhi has a blazing start to their chase, but they kept losing wickets at regular intervals as the innings went on. Delhi was left with the task of scoring 36 runs in the last over.

The West Indian all-rounder Rovman Powell was at the crease for Delhi and was facing his fellow countryman Obed McCoy. Powell slammed three sixes off the first three deliveries in the over and an unreal heist was looking possible. But the third ball triggered a controversy that took center stage in the match. McCoy bowled a full toss which looked to have finished above the waist height and everybody felt that it was a no-ball. However, the umpire that it was a legal delivery and that infuriated the Delhi camp.

The Delhi skipper Rishabh Pant looked so frustrated with the call that he decided to call off his team. He also sent assistant coach Pravin Amre to the field to convey his stance. However, things calmed down momentarily and as the match resumed Rajasthan emerged victorious by 15 runs. The actions on the part of Rishabh Pant and the Delhi team during the whole incident have been criticized by one and all.

The former English batter Kevin Pietersen did not mince his word while criticizing Pant and his team. “It may have disrupted his concentration. It may have disrupted how Rishabh Pant was thinking about the game. That’s more concerning to me than the umpire call, the behavior of Delhi,”- Pietersen said during the post-match show on Star Sports.

Notably, the Head Coach of Ricky Ponting was not present in the team dugout for this match as he is in isolation because one of his family members tested positive for COVID-19. Pietersen mentioned this and said that the incident would have been avoided if Ponting had been present. He also slammed Pravin Amre for walking into the field of play.

“I just do not understand the coach, he is a senior figure in those rooms. Rishabh Pant was calling them off. They wanted to walk off. For me, that was unacceptable and I hope I never see that again in the game of cricket.”- he further added.