Top 5 fighting moments in IPL history

Ranking the top five fighting moments in the history of IPL. The latest edition of Indian Premier League concluded after debutant Gujarat Titans won the final by defeating Rajasthan Royals. The participation of different players from all around the world makes IPL one of the toughest T20 league in the world. Despite the tough moments IPL is recognized for its fair play among teams but there has been some moments of heat which turn into big fights in the past. Some of the fights being among Indian players while some international stars fighting it out. As a result of the competitiveness, players are at the peak of their aggression and do not step back from indulging in a heated argument with the opposition. In the past occasions, some verbal arguments have become serious and umpires had to indulge in to calm the matter down. We will take a trip to the Top five famous IPL fighting moments over the years.

1. Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir – IPL 2013

   

   This was two aggressive captains facing each other, both coming from Delhi. Virat Kohli is a passionate man who is well known for his over aggressive attitude, but the usually quiet Gambhir is also no pushover. When two big giants of Indian cricket collided it resulted in heavy controversies. On 11 April 2013, KKR gave a target of 155 to RCB. On the first delivery of the 10th over Virat Kohli was dismissed by KKR bowler Lakshmipathy Balaji. Gambhir ran in to celebrate with the bowler. It was said that Virat as usual spoke some curse words towards bowler in frustration. But Gambhir take it in a heavy way and showed his anger to Kohli. Virat was did not back off as both of them indulged in an unwanted quarrel. Another Delhi boy Rajat Bhatia intervened and pacify the matter. Both of them were fined later on. This was definitely not a good sight for Indian fans as they have seen these two playing alongside for the Indian team.

2. Kieron Pollard and Mitchell Starc – IPL 2014

   

   In the match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians, the Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc bowled a bouncer to Pollard which he had to duck. After the ball, Starc took a jibe at Pollard before going back for his run up and that irritated Pollard. In the next delivery, Pollard intentionally stepped away but Starc released the ball towards the batsman. Kieron Pollard tried to throw his bat towards Starc but he throw it towards him. Umpires took the control and Chris Gayle also had to intervene in order to settle the temperatures but later on Virat Kohli was also seen arguing with Kieron Pollard.

3. Harbhajan Singh and Sreesanth – IPL 2008

   

   This was probably one of the most talked-about fights in the history of the league. Mumbai Indians had lost the game against Kings XI Punjab at PCA Stadium in Mohali. Now at the time when players were shaking hands with each other, Punjab’s Sreesanth took a dig at his co player in Indian team Harbhajan Singh about MI’s consecutive losses. But his words didn’t go well with the Indian off-spinner and he slapped Sreesanth on the ground. Sreesanth was seen in tears during the live broadcast and this made onto the front page of every newspaper. Although the whole incident was not captured on camera but this was definitely a serious matter as physical contact was involved. As a result, the IPL governing body suspended Harbhajan Singh for the rest of the season while Sreesanth was given a warning. This incident is popularly known as Slapgate incident between Sreesanth and Harbhajan Singh.

4. Sourav Ganguly and Shane Warne – IPL 2008

   

   In the very first edition, Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals were playing each other where two absolute veteran legends of the game were captaining their respective sides. Graeme Smith took the catch of Ganguly and it was not clear that whether the bowl touched the ground or not. Ganguly intervened and asked the umpire to check it in the replay and was later given not out. After the game, Warne said “If an international captain like Graeme Smith caught it and said it was a clean catch and Rudi Koertzen said he caught it. And anyway, the players aren’t allowed to ask for the umpire. But Sourav asked the Indian umpire to go to the TV replay. That’s not in the spirit of the game so I was very, very disappointed with Sourav.” Both the players were fined 10 per cent of their match fees while umpire Pratap Singh was suspended for one match for going upstairs without any concrete reason.

5. Kieron Pollard and Shane Watson – IPL 2013

   

   Pollard has a special connection with the Australians. He again was involved in a fight and this time it was again an Australian. In the match between Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians, Shane Watson was batting well for Rajasthan Royals and Pollard was given the ball. Instead of bowling, Pollard was continuously trying to sledge the Australian. Watson, as all know is a quiet and humble player, took the help of the umpires to calm the West Indian down. Later Pollard took the wicket of Watson and celebrated wildly and point him to go towards the dug-out. When Pollard was fielding right in front of the Rajasthan Royals dugout Watson swirled few words at the West Indian. The Australian was later sent upstairs by Rahul Dravid. This gave rise to a huge rivalry between Pollard and Watson.

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