Former India and Delhi Capitals Virender Sehwag jumped to the defense of Kolkata Knight Riders batsman Angkrish Raghuvanshi. During KKR’s match against Lucknow Super Giants on April 26, Raghuvanshi became the fourth batsman in IPL history to be dismissed while obstructing the field.

Raghuvanshi hit a delivery from pacer Prince Yadav towards mid-wicket and departed for a single, only to be dismissed by non-striker Cameron Green. As Raghuvanshi returned to the box, Mohammed Shami’s shot hit him.

In a match that would eventually have more drama, the third umpire ruled out Raghuvanshi for obstructing the field. He joined the likes of Yusuf Pathan, Amit Mishra and Ravindra Jadeja to be the only players eliminated by that method in the IPL.

“A tough decision has been taken here” – Virender Sehwag

Speaking to Cricbuzz, Sehwag opined that Raghuvanshi had a hard time. He said Raghuvanshi did not deliberately try to block defenders, even if he changed direction while running.

“All batsmen look at the fielder when the ball is coming towards them. You make a run, make two runs and see which end is safer. If the pitch came to the bowling side, there was no need to dive. But when you know the pitch is coming to your end, then you dive. Your eyes will naturally go towards the fielder.”

“It’s not like his eyes were on the fielder because he thought, ‘I’m stopping something.’ He dived after that. So, I don’t think he’s out. When he turned, he was looking at the fielder to see where the ball was coming from.”

“But after turning, he ran and jumped. He was no longer looking at the defender or his attention ahead. In my opinion, a bit of a harsh decision has been made here,” he said.

IPL playing conditions on field obstruction

According to the IPL playing conditions, which include the MCC rule book, clause 37.1.4 states that the mode of sending off is obstructing the field.

“For the avoidance of doubt, if an umpire considers that a batsman, by running between the wickets, has significantly changed his direction without probable cause and thereby obstructed a fielder’s attempt to make a run, the batsman must, on appeal, be dismissed, obstructing the field. It will not be relevant whether a run has been made or not,” the IPL 2026 rule book states.

Angkrish Raghuvanshi’s wicket puts KKR in trouble

Angkrish Raghuvanshi was dismissed in KKR’s fifth innings, having made 9 runs in 8 balls to leave the 2024 champions reeling at 27/3. Despite Mohsin Khan spitting fire everywhere, Rinku Singh and Cameron Green steadied the ship.

Rinku finally brought some respectability to KKR’s total with an unbeaten 83. But drama during the chase meant the match ended in a draw.

Angkrish Raghuvanshi; KKR’s next star

In IPL 2026, Angkrish Raghuvanshi made 209 runs in 8 matches at an average of almost 30 and a strike rate of 141. He is currently KKR’s second highest run-scorer in the tournament. He has also scored 2 fifties, which is the joint most for KKR this year along with Rinku Singh. He has also hit the most fours for KKR this year.

After not winning for 6 matches, KKR finally won two matches in a row. Their next match is on May 3 against an in-form Sunrisers Hyderabad side in Hyderabad. KKR will definitely hope that Angkrish Raghuvanshi forgets this incident and bounces back stronger.

Also Read: Angkrish Raghuvanshi gets ugly double punishment from BCCI after snatching obstruction of field dismissal