IPL 2023 controversies: Clash of four Delhi boys to MS Dhoni's 'shrewd' tactic vs umpires

Add as a preferred source on Google

IPL 2023: From Delhi boys Virat Kohli, Gautam gambhir, Nitish Rana and Hrithik Shokeen getting into verbal spats on ground to MS Dhoni's antics in Qualifier 1 to halt play and make Matheesha Pathirana eligible to play - here are the top controversies from the IPL 2023.

Virat Kohli vs Gautam Fight on-field spat 2.0

Back in 2013, the two Delhi boys, Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir clashed against each other on the field and the video of the spat is an internet hit till date. Gambhir was the captain of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) back then.

10 years later, the two came face-to-face against each other once again. In the match between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on May 15, Kohli and LSG mentor Gambhir had to be separated by players and support staff of both the teams once again.

It all started with a heated exchange between Kohli and Naveen-ul-Haq during LSG's 127-run chase in Lucknow. Wild celebrations from Kohli were on display throughout the match at LSG's home ground.

Once RCB won the match by 18 runs, Kohli and Gambhir all of a sudden got into a verbal spat. For the unknown, Gambhir had put finger on his lips in a gesture to silence RCB fans during the first meeting of the season between the two teams at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Bengaluru on April 10.

Virat Kohli vs Naveen-ul-Haq ft. Mangoes

Anything is possible in the IPL. Mangoes, mango, sweet, aam and other related words had to be muted on LSG's social media handles. The clash between Kohli and Naveen on May 15 continued post the match as well.

During the ceremonial handshake, the two cricketers again had a go at each other and the Afghan was seen disrespectfully throwing away Kohli's hand. Later, he denied KL Rahul's offer to accord truce between Kohli and him and walked away the LSG captain asked to come and clear things out with Kohli.

Later, a series of Instagram stories from Naveen to take shots at Kohli made headlines. In one of the stories, the pacer shared a picture of a plate full of mangoes just after Kohli got out for one against Mumbai Indians.

As LSG crashed out of the IPL 2023 by losing in the Eliminator, fans trolled and abused Naveen all over again. 'Mangoes' was trending on Twitter the moment MI defeated LSG in the knockout game. A few MI players also clicked pictures with mangoes.

Virat Kohli vs Sourav Ganguly no handshake saga

RCB defeated Delhi Capitals on April 15 in Bengaluru but the 'no handshake' moment between Kohli and Sourav Ganguly took the centre stage soon. Post the match, the two cricketing stalwarts allegedly avoided each other during the ceremonial handshake between the two teams.

DC's assistant coach opted to not comment anything on the alleged rift between Kohli and his team's director of cricket Ganguly, but said that there was fire in the former's belly throughout the match.

Fans related the entire episode with Kohli's ODI sacking under the tenure of Ganguly as the BCCI president. The two, however, shook hands and hugged in the next match between the two teams.

Play halted in Hyderabad amid Kohli, Kohli chants

Play at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium had to be halted after fans disagreed with umpires decision on a waist-high no-ball l decision with SRH batters Heinrich Klaasen and Abdul Samad in the middle.

Moments later, the play had to be halted as LSG camp complained to umpires about a section of fans who reportedly threw something at the LSG dugout near the boundary rope. Chants of 'Kohli, Kohli' against LSG continued during the break.

MS Dhoni's antics in Qualifier 1

The CSK halted play for over four minutes just to make Matheesha Pathirana eligible to bowl. The pacer was out of field for over nine minutes and required to spend some time on field before becoming eligible to bowl.

Dhoni, who wanted him to bowl the 16th over during GT's run-chase, kept on arguing and talking with umpires for four minutes as Pathirana regained eligibilty to bowl.

Nitish Rana vs Hrithik Shokeen

The two Delhi cricketer clashed against each other during the KKR vs MI match on April 16. Shokeen celebrated wildly after dismissng Rana and said a few words before Rana hurled abuses.

Rana had to be calmed down by Suryakumar Yadav and Piyush Chawla.