R Ashwin clears the air over Dwayne Bravo's wide ball saga in DC vs CSK match

The umpiring standard in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) has been a hot topic of debate. There have been few controversial decisions made during the tournament which many feel should not have happened considering the technology that is in place for the tournament.

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Earlier, KL Rahul was given not out by the third umpire against KKR despite the replays showing that the ball has been caught cleanly by Rahul Tripathi. In another shocker, the third umpire ruled Devdutt Padikkal not out even after the ultra edge clearly showing a spike as the ball went past the ball when the southpaw was attempting to reverse sweep the ball. Something similar happened in the game between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Delhi Capitals (DC).

The match was heading towards a nail-biting finish with DC needing six runs off the final over with three wickets in hand. On the second ball of the over, Bravo bowled a delivery that pitched way outside off, not even landed on the pitch. The third Umpire ruled the delivery as 'wide' leaving DC coach Ricky Ponting livid, who felt the delivery should have been called a no-ball instead.

Former India player Sunil Gavaskar also lashed out at the umpires and said the decisions should not impact the outcome of the match. Even though DC won the match, things could have got trickier had Hetmyer got out on the next ball.

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"That was clearly a no-ball. We've had a couple of decisions from TV umpires, which in these circumstances can make the difference between winning and losing, and that shouldn't happen," said Gavaskar while commentating for Star Sports. ''These kinds of decisions should not change the game. It's a good thing Delhi won because that could have changed the game," said Gavaskar.

However, DC spinner R Ashwin later clarified how the umpire made the right call by declaring it as wide. The rules say that if the ball pitches outside the pitch, it's a no-ball but if it pitches behind the stumps, it's a wide. Since the ball went past the pitch on the full, the umpire made the right call.

"In case, people are wondering, if the ball pitches outside the pitch it is supposed to be a no-ball and if it pitches behind the stumps, it is a wide. That is the clarification," Ashwin told teammate Shimron Hetmyer in a video posted on iplt20.com.