Marylebone Cricket Club defended the umpires’ decision to give Angkrish Raghuvanshi out for Obstructing the Field during the IPL 2026 match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Lucknow Super Giants at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow on Sunday, April 26.
The referees’ call sparked debatewith questions about whether the batter deliberately changed direction or simply reacted instinctively in a split second.
The MCC clarified that the decision is in line with long-standing interpretations of the laws of cricket, stating that a batsman who arbitrarily changes direction while running, particularly on or across the pitch, is considered to be obstructing the field.
“There has long been an interpretation of this exact matter of running the batsman at a toss – it is published in Tom Smith’s Cricket Umpiring and Scoring, the official interpretation of the MCC’s Laws of Cricket, and has been accepted for many years.
“It reads: ‘A fielder who changes direction during a run, particularly one who changes direction to run on the field or takes another route that would not be the fastest route to the other end, commits arbitrary action,'” MCC wrote in a statement.
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Confusion. Long bend. Third drama for the umpire and Raghuvanshi is given out for obstructing the pitch!
Only the 4th time a batter has been given out for obstruction in the field in the TATA IPL #TATAIPL 2026 #LSGvKKR | LIVE NOW pic.twitter.com/WRgr608Odb— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) April 26, 2026
‘WINNING TRANSITION CAUSED RAGHUVANSHI’S FALL’
In this case, the MCC said that Raghuvanshi clearly changed his path onto the pitch and over the throw, thus meeting the definition of an intentional act. He also stressed that whether he would get his way is not relevant to the decision.
“Raghuvanshi clearly meets that criteria. When he runs, he is outside the wicket. When the ball reaches the fielder, he goes to the middle of the pitch – which is not where he should be running under any circumstances – and then turns and runs back down the leg side, putting himself between the ball and the wicket,” MCC explained.
“This is, by definition, a deliberate act. If he had stayed off the pitch and remained on the offside side, the ball would not have hit him and there would not even be any question of an obstruction. If he had started down the leg side, then turned and returned to the ground on the same side before the ball hit him, it would also see that he was not off – he would be in the way of causing an MCC, but it would not be a deliberate overstep.” added.
Raghuvanshi was later fined 20 percent of his match fee for his animated reaction upon release. He also received one demerit point for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct. The IPL governing body confirmed that he was found guilty of a Level 1 offense under Article 2.2, which relates to the misuse of equipment during a match. According to the statement, Raghuvanshi confessed to the crime.
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Issued by:
sabyasachi chowdhury
Published on:
30 Apr 2026 18:35 IST
