Did the Umpire’s ‘Short-Run’ Call Cost Kings XI Punjab a Victory?

The umpire signalled it a short run, but replays suggested otherwise.

So close, yet so far for Kings XI Punjab as they were beaten in a Super Over by Delhi Capitals in both teams’ first match of the 2020 Indian Premier League (IPL).

Delhi batted first and posted 157/8 and in reply, Mayank Agarwal got Punjab to a point where they needed 13 runs off the last 6 balls, and 1 run off the last 3. Instead, KXIP lost two wickets in three balls and went on to lose the match in the Super Over that followed.

But, did they even need that one run that stood between them and victory? The one run that had earlier been taken out from their score by an umpire.

With 25 runs required off 12 balls, the game was poised nicely for a nail-biting finish. Kagiso Rabada came in to bowl the penultimate over of the innings with Mayank Agarwal set at 65.

To start things off, Rabada sent in a pitch-perfect yorker at the base of the stumps and Agarwal couldn’t score off it. He, however, hit the second ball for a four. On the next ball, a full-toss outside the off-stump, Agarwal drove it through extra covers and came back for an easy couple of runs.

However, the umpire gestured for a short run and even though 2 runs were originally added to the score, one was retracted.

After the over was complete and the replays were shown, Chris Jordan’s bat looked to be inside the crease line. When the cameras zoomed in, the edge of the bat was clearly inside the crease, although just.

Former England International Kevin Pietersen on commentary suggested that this could have been rectified by the umpires since the TV umpires are now even used for checking front-foot no-balls.

Virender Sehwag, too, took a dig at the umpires.

I don’t agree with the man of the match choice . The umpire who gave this short run should have been man of the match.
Short Run nahin tha. And that was the difference. #DCvKXIP pic.twitter.com/7u7KKJXCLb

— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) September 20, 2020

While the match continued, the decision by the umpires could indeed have been what cost Punjab the game. As eventually, it was just one run that KXIP couldn’t score in the last three balls of the 20th over by Marcus Stoinis. The match then went into a Super Over and Delhi closed the victory with Kagiso Rabada conceding only 2 runs that Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant scored with ease.