Veteran Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin found himself at the centre of controversy during a Tamil Nadu Premier League match between Dindigul Dragons and IDream Tiruppur Tamizhians, following a heated on-field outburst after his contentious dismissal.

Ashwin, captaining the Dindigul Dragons, opened the innings and looked in sublime touch from the outset. He raced to 18 off just 10 deliveries, peppering the boundary with two fours and a six. However, his promising start was abruptly cut short in the fifth over when he was adjudged leg-before-wicket (LBW) by umpire Venkatesan Krithika to a delivery from left-arm spinner R Sai Kishore.

Attempting a paddle sweep, Ashwin was struck on the pads while trying to steal a quick single. Much to his disbelief, the umpire upheld the appeal. Replays clearly showed that the ball had pitched outside the leg stump, which would typically render the LBW decision invalid under cricket’s laws. Unfortunately for Ashwin, both he and his opening partner Shivam Singh (30 off 27) had exhausted their team`s quota of DRS referrals in the very first over, wasted on marginal leg-side wides due to a newly introduced TNPL rule allowing reviews for wides and no-balls.