On-field umpire’s Telugu comments in IPL match go viral

The ongoing season of the Indian Premier League has been nothing less than a stunner. Being organised amid a global pandemic, the tournament has proven to be a major source of relief for millions of sports fans across the globe. With the season approaching its business end, the teams have been trying to bring their ‘A’ game to the fore in their bid to seal a spot in the final four. Last night’s match between the Chennai Super Kings and the Kolkata Knight Riders was a key encounter for Eoin Morgan’s men with CSK already being knocked out. While the match turned out to be a nail-biter, a certain moment, involving umpire Shamsuddin, in the first innings, had all the Telugu fans worked up.

The incident took place in the 19th over of KKR’s innings when a widish delivery, by Sam Curran, was missed by Dinesh Karthik. Expecting a wide call, Karthik made an appeal to the standing umpire, Shamsuddin, who declared it as a legitimate delivery. Responding to the KKR batsman’s query, umpire Shamsuddin commented in Telugu. His comment, “Lopala….chala lopala…koncham kuda kadu,” (meaning well within the tram line) was picked up by the stump mic and soon went viral with numerous fans sharing the clip on social media.

Chettihody Shamsuddin, from Hyderabad, is a member of the Emirates International Panel of ICC Umpire and has held duties as an on-field umpire for several One Day Internationals and T20 Internationals. He is currently officiating the thirteenth season of the IPL in the UAE.

Coming to the match, the Chennai Super Kings drove home to victory in the final over as Ravindra Jadeja slammed back-to-back sixes. The men in yellow won the match by 6 wickets leaving the Kinght Riders in a precarious position on the points table. The result also meant Mumbai Indians emerged as the first team to qualify for the playoffs this season.