Social media was abuzz with reactions after the Punjab Kings (PBKS) suffered their fifth loss of the season at the hands of the Mumbai Indians (MI) on 14 May in Dharamshala. It was just a fourth win for the Mumbai Indians (MI) and despite being eliminated from the playoff race, the five-time champions made a statement.
Tilak Varma’s spectacular 33-ball 75* helped MI hunt down a 201-run target in the match. And although the Mumbai Indians won, it was not a very happy outing for Rohit Sharma. The Hitman scored 25 runs off just 26 deliveries, hitting two sixes and was castled by Yuzvendra Chahal.
After the match, Rohit poked fun at his own knock in the dressing room while lauding the performances of his teammates. “Guys, great win. Complete team effort. With the bat, it was good to see everyone chip in while I was enjoying my bit of Test cricket,” he said.
Meanwhile, Punjab Kings, once the only unbeaten team after six matches this season, now face a trickier road to the playoffs. To make matters worse, Punjab Kings pacer Arshdeep Singh has faced online hate after allegedly referring to Tilak Varma with a word having a racist meaning. The video, before the match, saw Arshdeep call Tilak by the word ‘oye andhere‘, which translates to ‘darkness’.
The video went viral online and quickly garnered heat from the fans who blasted the PBKS cricketer for using a word for Tilak with a racist connotation. The video in question also saw Arshdeep ask Tilak if he put on sunscreen and point out to Naman Dhir seated before him and referred to him as ‘noor’ from Punjab. The word ‘noor’ here means ‘bright’ or ‘light’.
After Punjab Kings’ loss, a game which saw Tilak emerge as the Player of the Match, Arshdeep has been at the receiving end of criticism on social media. The video hasn’t gone down well with fans who have called out the cricketer for his racist behaviour. Former cricketer-turned-commentator Laxman Sivaramakrishnan also reacted to this, calling for a ban on Arshdeep Singh. Sivaramakrishnan earlier had alleged that he had been a victim of racism.
Arshdeep also called out a fan who reacted to Punjab losing their fifth match in a row.
Ravi Ashwin calls for major rule change
Ravichandran Ashwin did not like the fact that the Punjab Kings were denied one run on the last ball of their innings. This incident happened when PBKS’ Vishnu Vinod was struck on his pads by Jasprit Bumrah as he attempted a paddle shot. The umpire raised the finger, giving it out and Vinod used the DRS, which ruled him not out as he was struck outside the line.
However, a leg-bye was taken in the process and despite the DRS ruling against the on-field umpire, the one run was not added to PBKS’ total. Taking to X, Ashwin sent out a post where he urged a change of rule. “The wrong decision has cost Punjab a run; this rule needs to change ASAP!” he wrote.
PBKS’ social media team comes under criticism It is not just the Punjab Kings team that has come under criticism, but also their social media team. Banters are, of course, part of the online world espeically in such tournaments, but several of PBKS’ tweets, which aimed a dig at other teams, have witnessed backlash. An example- PBKS shared a reel on them ‘giving away’, one point to the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) after rain washed out their match at the Eden Gardens last month. Another example of this is when PBKS posted ‘49/1 in 4.3 overs’, referring to RCB’s lowest IPL total, in a match against Rajasthan Royals on 28 May.
After PBKS suffered a fifth consecutive defeat, fans revisited these old posts by the Punjab Kings and shared their criticism. “Pretty sure they want that 1 point back now,” one fan wrote.
Punjab Kings faced the first of their five losses so far on 28 April when they went down to the Rajasthan Royals. After the match, PBKS had sent out a tweet that read, “Haarne pe kya tweet karna hota hain bhai?”, jokingly flexing their unbeaten run. After their fifth loss, fans also reacted to that post.
Although the Punjab Kings have lost five in a row, all hope isn’t lost for them. They have two more matches, against RCB (on 17 May) and against Lucknow Super Giants (on 23 May) and need to win both to qualify for the playoffs. Another loss and their wait for a maiden IPL title might just end up being extended.
