The Indian Premier League has really upped the game when it comes to power-hitting, especially since last season. We witnessed players like Heinrich Klaasen, Travis Head, and Abhishek Sharma go all out for SRH, and other teams quickly followed their lead. This trend has continued into IPL 2025, with teams sticking to the power-hitting strategy from the previous year. So, it raised some eyebrows when Hardik Pandya’s bat was inspected by the umpire as he stepped up to bat during the DC vs MI chase on Sunday in New Delhi.

Hardik came in at No. 5 after Suryakumar Yadav got out, and the umpire used a device to check the width of his bat to ensure it met the regulations.

The umpire employed a gauge to measure Hardik’s bat, and it passed the test without any issues. On Sunday, there were also two other similar checks when Phil Salt and Shimron Hetmyer had their bats inspected during the RR vs RCB match.

What was the reason for checking Hardik Pandya's bat?

Bat checks are now a standard part of the tournament rules to ensure fairness for all players. The BCCI has given match officials the green light to inspect any bat during live games, a shift from past practices where checks were done in the dressing rooms.

In a chat with PTI, a former BCCI umpire explained, “Umpires have a bat gauge shaped like a house. If the bat fits through it, it’s considered good to go. We used to conduct bat checks before the innings began in the dressing room, where players would hand over their bats for inspection.”

“The real question is whether any player submitted one bat for inspection but used a different one during the game. If that’s the case, then this new protocol is definitely a good move. Players usually bring several bats with them. While the weight might differ, the height, width (bat face), depth (middle of the blade), and edge width must all comply with the ICC’s specified limits,” the former umpire added.

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