There has been a controversy over a decision of the TV umpire in the first semi-final match of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026. There has been an uproar after South African captain Aiden Markram was given out. The entire incident happened in the 8th over of South Africa’s innings. The Proteas team, which came to bat first after losing the toss at the Eden Gardens Stadium in Kolkata, lost 2 wickets in the second over. After the score was 12/2, Markram and Dewald Brevis took over the South African innings and did not allow the team to suffer any further loss in the powerplay.
Markram and Brewis were now in a mood to increase the run rate, when Markram became the victim of a controversial decision. Markram made a good effort on a light short ball from Rachin Ravindra but the contact was not good. The ball floated towards long on, where standing Darryl Mitchell took the catch by diving forward. Although he was not sure whether he had taken a clean catch. Mitchell immediately asked the TV umpire to check it.
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Was the ball touching the ground?
The jump occurred after Mitchell got the ball in his hands. The big question was, were Mitchell’s fingers under the ball when it jumped? TV umpire Nitin Menon looked at it from different angles. The issue seemed very close but he acknowledged that Mitchell’s fingers were down when the ball jumped. Nitin Menon declared a clean catch and Markram had to return to the pavilion. Markram was out after scoring 18 runs in 20 balls. His wicket fell at the score of 55.
Questions arising on social media
Questions are being raised on Nitin Menen’s decision on giving Markram out. An X user wrote, ‘The ball was clearly visible touching the ground, yet the third umpire gave Aiden Markram out. Was it really a clean catch or a wrong decision in a World Cup knockout match?
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Yanson reached a score worth fighting for
Shortly after Markram returned to the pavilion, David Miller (6) and Dewald Brewis (34) also walked out. Half of South Africa’s team was reduced to 77 runs in 10.2 overs. From here Marco Yanson took the lead along with Tristan Stubbs (24) and took the Proteas team to a fighting score. Yanson scored unbeaten 55 runs in 30 balls with the help of 2 fours and 5 sixes, due to which the South African team scored 169 runs at the loss of 8 wickets. Now it has to be seen whether she is able to stop New Zealand from chasing or not.
Playing XI of both the teams:
New Zealand – Tim Seifert (wk), Finn Allen, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner (c), Cole McConchie, Jimmy Neesham, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson
South Africa – Quinton de Kock (wk), Aiden Markram (c), Ryan Rickleton, Dewald Brewis, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Yanson, Corbin Bosch, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi
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