Delhi Capitals pacer Lungi Ngidi is “stable” and will be “released from hospital soon” after the South African suffered a gruesome head injury against the Punjab Kings at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Saturday. Play was stopped for 14 minutes after Ngidi got injured at 17:53 IST and was immediately taken to Max Hospital, Pusa Road, New Delhi for medical examination.
“Delhi Capitals’ Lungi Ngidi hit his head on the ground while attempting a catch during his team’s match against Punjab Kings. He was taken to hospital by ambulance complaining of headache and neck pain,” the IPL said on X (formerly Twitter).
“Ngidi is stable and expected to be released from hospital soon. Vipraj Nigam is on the field as a concussion substitute,” it added.
What happened to Lungi Ngidi?
The incident took place on the third ball of the third ball bowled by Axar Patel. Ngidi was trying to slide down a mistake from Punjab kings opener Priyansh Arya but grossly misjudged the trajectory of the ball which went past his outstretched right hand while in the air.
As a result, the Proteas player landed on his back and the back of his head collided with the surface of the Arun Jaitley Stadium, causing him considerable pain. He immediately covered his head and tried to recover from the fall, even as medical personnel rushed to Ngidi with a stretcher.
Ngidi was seen responding to the support staff as fellow Proteas players Tristan Stubbs and David Miller came to check on him along with Punjab Kings head coach Ricky Ponting and Delhi Capitals head coach Hemang Badani. But they had to take him to the hospital in an ambulance.
Punjab Kings start the most successful chase
Punjab Kings rewrote the T20 record books with a breathtaking batting blitz as they overhauled a daunting target of 265 runs to achieve the most successful chase in the history of the format.
KL Rahul combined grace with the ability to script an innings of 152 not out, the third-highest individual IPL score, while Nitish Rana (91 not out) batted with authority as the duo powered hosts Delhi Capitals to a mammoth 264/2.
Chasing the target, Punjab’s dynamic opening pair of Prabhsimran Singh (76) and Priyansh Arya (73) came out all guns blazing, adding 126 runs in just 41 balls to lay a formidable foundation for the chase and set the tone for their sixth win of the season.
Dropped twice by Karun Nair in the space of three balls, skipper Shreyas Iyer then scored an unbeaten 71 off 36 deliveries to get Punjab Kings over the line with seven balls to spare. Incidentally, the previous most successful run in T20 and IPL history also belongs to Punjab Kings chasing 262 against Kolkata Knight Riders in 2024.
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