2023 In Review

Kohli v Gambhir, Bairstow stumping and more: The top 10 cricket controversies of 2023

by Wisden Staff January 1, 2024 - 12:01pm 4 minute read

Several ICC tournaments, high-profile bilaterals, numerous franchise leagues – a lot of cricket was played around the world in 2023. Here are the top 10 cricket controversies of the last year, along with other notable mentions.

Virat Kohli v Naveen-ul-Haq v Gautam Gambhir

Kohli and Naveen got involved in an infamous war of words during a LSG vs RCB match in IPL 2023 with then LSG mentor Gautam Gambhir getting involved as well. Things turned ugly after the match and got stretched over into cryptic social media posts and crowd chants against Naveen. The aftereffects spilled over into the World Cup later that year.

CSK wasting time to get Pathirana to bowl

Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni argued with the on-field umpires after they disallowed Matheesha Pathirana to bowl during a match against Gujarat Titans as the latter had been off the field for some time. CSK were able to waste enough time arguing such that Pathirana’s time off the field was made up for and he was eventually allowed to bowl without any sanctions on the fielding side.

Mitchell Starc’s Ashes non-catch

Starc caught a top-edged pull of Ben Duckett at Lord’s in the second Ashes Test only to slide along the turf with the ball making contact with the grass. However, he claimed the catch before it was overturned by the TV umpire, leading to MCC having to intervene to explain the umpires’ decision.

Jonny Bairstow Ashes stumping

Bairstow was stumped by Alex Carey at Lord’s after the former had wandered out of his crease assuming the ball was dead. The incident triggered, for the umpteenth time, the never-ending “Spirit of Cricket” debate and might lay its claim to be the cricket controversy of 2023.

Lord’s Long room – MCC vs Australia

Immediately after the Bairstow stumping, the Australian players were heckled and abused by members of the MCC at the prestigious Long Room at Lord’s, leading to several suspensions.

Harmanpreet Kaur’s stump smash

Kaur was involved in an ugly incident in an ODI against Bangladesh where she smashed the stumps with her bat after being given out lbw. She seemed to claim that the ball had hit her pad but possibly did not register that the slip fielder had caught the ball as well after it lobbed off her pads. She was suspended for two matches.

Late addition of reserve day for India-Pakistan Asia Cup match

A reserve day was added to the IND vs PAK Super Fours clash mid-way through the Asia Cup after persistent rains had washed out their group stage encounter. No other game apart from the final had a scheduled reserve day, drawing criticism from several quarters.

Angelo Mathews timed out

Mathews became the first batter in the history of international cricket to be timed out when his helmet broke during a SL vs BAN game at the 2023 World Cup. Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan did not withdraw his appeal, leading to divided opinions among the cricket community. Funnily, it was Mathews who dismissed Shakib in that game in the second innings.

World Cup pitch swap

Reports emerged before the World Cup semi-final that the pitch for the game was changed from what was originally planned based on the requirements of the Indian team. The ICC pitch consultant was raised concerns over the matter before ICC released a statement that such changes of pitch allocation are normal in tournament of this length.

Usman Khawaja’s “All lives are equal” message

Khawaja sported shoes with “All lives are equal” and “Freedom is for all” written on them, leading to ICC warning him of sanctions if he wore them during the Test matches against Pakistan. Khawaja responded by writing the names of his daughters and sporting a black armband, for which he was reprimanded.