Rohit Sharma looked visibly irritated as his bat was checked with the gauge just moments before the Mumbai Indians innings got underway at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday night. With Royal Challengers Bengaluru setting a target of 241, the stakes for the chase were immediately high, and for openers, even small interruptions can throw off rhythm. That was exactly the case for Sharma, the former Mumbai captain, as the match official struggled to get the measuring device to sit properly on his bat. In the clip, Sharma is seen glancing toward someone off-camera, clearly unhappy with how the test was going. By contrast, his opening partner Ryan Rickelton from South Africa handled the same procedure far more smoothly, with his bat passing the gauge on the very first attempt—so easily that it appeared to slide into place without resistance.
The official attempted Sharma’s bat a second time as well. While the second measurement still didn’t look effortless, Sharma was ultimately granted permission to use the bat. Throughout the brief sequence, Sharma remained a picture of annoyance, and a TV commentator, Pommie Mbangwa of Zimbabwe, summed up the mood with the remark that Sharma was “annoyed no end.”
And then the problems for Rohit Sharma only intensified. Since the previous season, bat dimensions have been tested regularly to prevent players from using oversized equipment that could make it easier to clear the ropes illegally. The issue has affected multiple high-profile names already: Ayush Mhatre of Chennai Super Kings has failed the gauge test twice so far, while Rahul Tewatia of Gujarat Titans has also been compelled to switch his bat. Last season, Anrich Nortje, Sunil Narine and Ravindra Jadeja saw their bats turned away for the same reason.
Even with the equipment hurdle managed, Sharma still had to deal with a bigger setback during the chase. On 19 runs off 13 balls, he was forced into the retired-hurt option in the sixth over after appearing to pick up a hamstring injury. A physiotherapist attended to him, but after a few more overs, Sharma decided he could not continue.
Earlier in the evening, MI had been asked to bat first, and RCB responded with a commanding score. Phil Salt struck 78 off 36 balls, while captain Rajat Patidar added 53 off 20 deliveries—two contributions that largely shaped the innings and underlined their dominance. Virat Kohli, though not quite as fluid as the other batters, still found enough rhythm to finish with a fifty, scoring 50 off 38 balls as RCB built the total that MI later had to chase.
