BCCI punishes KKR skipper Nitish Rana, MI’s Hrithik Shokeen after verbal spat in IPL 2023; Suryakumar fined ₹12 lakh

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) stand-in skipper Nitish Rana and Mumbai Indians (MI) bowler Hrithik Shokeen were involved in an ugly duel during the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 encounter between the two former champions at the Wankhede Stadium.

The MI and KKR stars were reprimanded for breaching IPL’s Code of Conduct in match No.22 of the cash-rich league on Sunday.

Indian batter Suryakumar Yadav, who captained Mumbai Indians in the IPL 2023 match against KKR, was also fined for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct. Suryakumar has been fined by the IPL for maintaining a slow over rate in Mumbai’s home game against the two-time champions. Since it was Mumbai’s first offence of the season, stand-in skipper Suryakumar was fined Rs.12 lakh under the IPL’s Code of Conduct relating to minimum over-rate offences.

Meanwhile, Kolkata Knight Riders captain Rana has been fined 25 percent of his match fee as the Indian batter breached the IPL Code of Conduct during his side’s match against MI at the Wankhede Stadium. Rana, who earlier replaced Shreyas Iyer as KKR’s captain for the entire IPL 2023 season, has admitted to the Level 1 Offence under Article 2.21 of the IPL’s Code of Conduct.

Mumbai Indians bowler Shokeen has also been reprimanded following his heated exchange with KKR skipper Rana. According to an IPL media advisory, MI’s Shokeen admitted to the Level 1 Offence under Article 2.5 of the IPL’s Code of Conduct. The Match Referee’s decision is final and binding for Level 1 breaches of the Code of Conduct.

Talking about the IPL 2023 between Mumbai and Kolkata, crucial knocks from Ishan Kishan (58) and stand-in skipper Suryakumar (43) guided five-time champions MI to a five-wicket win over KKR at the Wankhede. Scoring the fastest century in the IPL 2023, opener Venkatesh Iyer lifted Kolkata to 185-6 in 20 overs.

In reply, MI chased down the challenging total in 17.4 overs to record their second win of the new season. “We had a chat in the dugout that we had to carry the momentum from the last game and the boys put on a show. I would have loved to finish the game but nevertheless, I was very happy with the way the team played,” Suryakumar said after MI’s win over KKR in the cash-rich league.