The Kings XI Punjab went up against the Rajasthan Royals for their season opener. Never having won at Jaipur in the past, Kings XI were desperate to bury the past and start afresh. It didn't start well for them, as their previous season's top run-getter KL Rahul fell in just the first over of the game.
Gayle took his time, while Mayank Agarwal played second fiddle. Post the eleventh over, Gayle decided to unleash the beast in him by tonking the ball to every nook and corner of the field. Gayle was finally dismissed for a solid 79, but a cameo by Sarfaraz (46* off 29) propelled KXIP to a healthy 184 - 4.
Chasing 185, Rajasthan got off to a blazing start as Buttler walloped the ball to all parts. The crowd even got to witness his trademark paddle scoops, which he played to perfection. Rajasthan were going great guns and were 108 for just one in the 13th over, when something controversial transpired.
Ashwin mankaded Buttler on the fifth ball of the over. It went upstairs and replays showed Buttler was backing up too far, thus resulting in him being given the marching orders. Rajasthan never really recovered from that and despite a few good strokes by the returning Steve Smith, wickets kept falling like ninepins.
In the end, Kings XI registered their first ever win over Rajasthan at Jaipur, by 14 runs.
Perhaps, the 'mankad' moment derailed the Rajasthan's momentum. Nevertheless, the mankading controversy did spark a debate.
Here's how Twitter reacted to Ashwin's 'mankading' of Buttler.
Buttler's fellow Englishmen had their say:
Even former English players chipped in:
And it went beyond…
While some questioned the laws…
Others had something else to say…
Furthermore, it was not the first time Buttler was 'mankaded'. Way back in 2014, Sri Lanka's Sachitra Senanayake mankaded Buttler in an ODI.
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