LED Stumps under spotlight amid dodgy WPL run-out calls in the league match between Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals.
LED stumps and the rules around it are under scrutiny after the Run-out calls in MI-DC game.
In the closing moments of the Delhi Capitals’ (DC) last-ball victory over the Mumbai Indians (MI) in Vadodara, there were three controversial run-out calls. Gayathri Venugopalan, the third umpire, declared the wicket not out in all three cases, apparently failing to take into account the LED stumps’ illumination as the signal that the wicket was shattered.
As a commentator, former India captain Mithali Raj stated that MI should have won two of those rulings involving Shikha Pandey and Radha Yadav. After the game, Raj stated on JioHotstar, “Pandey was given not out while the batter had the bat on the line.”
“When you dive and your bat first hits the ground [inside the crease] and then it [bounces up] because you have to dive full stretch, then it is not out. [But] with Radha Yadav, we can see the blade of the bat up. It is nowhere touching any part of the ground [inside] the crease [when the LED stumps light up]. That means she is out. The bat was never in the crease. That is pretty much out.”
Appendix D of the WPL 2025 playing conditions has this to say on what constitutes the wicket being broken when there are LED stumps in play
“Where LED wickets are used, the moment at which the wicket has been put down shall be deemed to be the first frame in which the LED lights are illuminated and subsequent frames show the bail permanently removed from the top of the stumps.”
In the 18th over of the Capitals’ chase, the Pandey incident occurred first ball for her. She attempted to steal a farewell after stepping over the stumps and missed a heave, but Niki Prasad sent her back. The striker was struck directly, and the run-out appeal was sent to the TV umpire after the batters stole a bye on the deflection.
When the LED stumps initially lighted up, Pandey’s bat was on the line, according to the replays. But by the next frame, when the bails clearly slid off the groove and Pandey’s bat was inside the crease, the TV umpire had rolled forward and made her not-out call.
MI captain Harmanpreet Kaur spoke with on-field umpires N Janani and Anish Sahasrabudhe after appearing dissatisfied with the ruling. Midway through the 19th, Pandey was run out, and the bye reduced DC’s equation to 24 off 14 balls.
Two balls later, even though Prasad was also mid-pitch, Radha was diving to make her crease at the striker’s end due to another mix-up. Even as Radha dived with the bat face up, wicketkeeper Yastika Bhatia broke the stumps. When the LED stumps lighted up, it appeared that no portion of the bat touched the ground over the crease line. Once more, the umpire ignored this and made her call based on the bails’ obvious removal from their grove, which meant Radha was safe.
Arundhati Reddy was brought in to face the final ball after Prasad holed out to deep midwicket with two needed off the final two balls. It just managed to avoid Harmanpreet racing backwards after she chipped it over cover. As Reddy dove full-stretch, Harmanpreet hit a flat throw to Bhatia, who broke the wicket as the batsmen were resuming their chase for the second, and ultimately the winning, run.
Once more, Reddy’s bat was on the line in the frame when the LED stumps initially lit up, but the third umpire determined that “the batter has made her ground before the wicket is completely dislodged” after examining further frames. The MI players didn’t appear to object, while the DC players rejoiced.