“Respect for Rana has grown in my eyes” - Ravi Ashwin opens up on Nitish Rana & Digvesh Rathi altercation in DPL 2025

Former Indian off-spinner Ravi Ashwin has shared his two cents on the recent controversy between West Delhi Lions skipper Nitish Rana and South Delhi Superstarz spinner Digvesh Rathi in the Delhi Premier League (DPL 2025) Eliminator.

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Moving into the details of the incident, Rana came up with Rathi’s trademark notebook celebration after hitting a maximum off him. Later, the duo had a physical altercation before the umpires had to intervene.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ashwin has asserted that if a bowler does something and emerges as a character, people will not accept that. However, he added that in this case, his respect towards the batter, Rana, has grown in his eyes, courtesy of the batter’s post-match media interaction.

“I just want to say one thing, in our beloved sport, if a bowler does something, if he emerges as a character, we are not willing to accept that. Maybe in the case of this fight between Nitish Rana and Rathi, the fault would lie with the spinner. But the respect for Rana has grown in my eyes,” said Ashwin on his YouTube channel ‘Ash Ki Baat’.

“It was Rana’s day. He hit 15 sixes. After the game, he was asked ‘What happened?’ The way he handled it was amazing. He said the fault could have been his or Digvesh’s. But he said that he was playing to help his team win, and Digvesh was doing that for his team. That spirit and heat are needed to play this game. It was easy for him to throw dirt on Digvesh Rathi, but he didn’t do it; he deflected the question,” he added.

After winning the Eliminator for his team by seven wickets, Rana told the media that he and Digvesh are trying to win the match for their respective teams, but above all, they both respect the game of cricket. However, he added that if someone tries to poke him, he will give a proper response.

“We were both trying to win the match for our respective teams, but above all, we both have to respect the game of cricket. He was the one who initiated things—though I won’t go into how. But if someone tries to provoke me, I won’t just take it quietly. That’s how I’ve played my cricket throughout. I can also hit sixes and respond in kind. I’ve been involved in many fights, but I’ve never been the one to start them. However, if someone tries to poke me, I will give a proper response,” he told PTI after the match.

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After the match, Rathi was fined 80 percent of his match fee for a Level 2 breach, while Rana was fined 50 percent of his match fee for Level 1 breach.

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