Rahane's No-Ball Controversy at MCA BKC Ground

On January 24th, in the middle of Mumbai's second innings at the MCA BKC Ground, Ajinkya Rahane got caught up . One second, everyone thought he was out, caught by Jammu & Kashmir's wicketkeeper Kanhaiya Wadhawan. But then, unexpectedly, he wasn't. Right after he walked off to the pavilion, and Shardul Thakur walked out to replace him, the umpires, S Ravi and Navdeep Singh Sidhu, called a no-ball thrown by Umar Nazir.

This was during the first ball of the 25th over, and it threw everything into confusion. Shardul Thakur, who had just become used to being on the field, was told to pause, and a short time later, to head back. For a short moment, it looked as if Rahane was running out of time to come back. Even the people commentating on the game thought so and said it might be happening.

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Ajinkya Rahane was given Out and he left ground and umpires called him back from dug out and Shardul was in the ground and sent back to the dressing room. Have you ever seen that a player called from dug out after he left field. #RanjiTrophy #AjinkyaRahane @BCCIdomestic @BCCI pic.twitter.com/LH3a8vtilo

— Manoj Yadav (@csmanoj21) January 24, 2025

But then, Rahane simply walks back onto the field, and Thakur has to step down, leaving everyone confused. What's even more surprising is that the no ball that caused all of the aforementioned conflict wasn't even shown on JioCinema, where the game was being streamed live. When asked, the Staff at the BKC ground mentioned they didn't have the footage, but the third umpire had considered this.

The third umpire, Nitin Goel, also the match referee, said the mix-up was due to a communication error. Mister Goel was saying, I was trying to get through to the umpire with a walkie-talkie, but we were not on the same channel, which delayed things a bit. Apparently, Rahane was also signaling that no one told him to wait. Goel was sure it was a no ball and said there's no debate.

Yet, after things calm down, one may be satisfied when the truth comes to light, even in situations filled with unpredictability and doubt. Mumbai was behind by 86 runs and in a tight spot at 91 for 6, working very hard not to be defeated by a big score. Rahane got another try but it didn't last long. Only two overs after, Umar Nazir, the same bowler, got him out. Paras Dogra from Jammu & Kashmir pulled off an amazing catch in the covers to send him back. Before saying Rahane was definitely out, the umpires stopped the game again to see if it was a no-ball.