VIDEO: Sunil Narine, Anrich Nortje’s bats fail size test during IPL 2025

During the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 match between the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Mullanpur, the bats used by Sunil Narine and Anrich Nortje failed the official size check.

The first incident happened before KKR started chasing PBKS’s target of 111 runs. Outside the playing area, reserve umpire Saiyed Khalid checked the bats of a few KKR players.

When he tested Narine’s bat, the thickest part of the blade was too wide and couldn’t pass through the measuring gauge. Narine, who was opening the batting for KKR, had a short chat with the umpire about it. On the other hand, the bat of Angkrish Raghuvanshi, who was standing next to him, passed the test.

Narine, who earlier bowled well and took two wickets for 14 runs in three overs, only scored five runs in the chase. Raghuvanshi ended up as KKR’s top scorer with 37 runs off 28 balls.

Later in the game, KKR’s fast bowler Anrich Nortje also faced a similar issue. When he came out to bat in the 16th over as the last man, on-field umpires Mohit Krishnadas and Saidharshan Kumar checked his bat and found it to be too thick.

The match had to be stopped briefly while substitute player Rahmanullah Gurbaz brought out other bats for Nortje. The new bat passed the test, but Nortje didn’t get a chance to use it, as Andre Russell was bowled immediately after.

This was Nortje’s first match of the season after returning from a back injury he suffered during SA20. He bowled well and picked up one wicket for 23 runs in his three overs.

In previous IPL seasons, such bat checks usually took place inside the dressing room. But recently, including in Sunday’s matches (RR vs RCB and DC vs MI), umpires have started checking bats on the field. According to IPL rules, a bat should not be more than 96.4 cm long, the blade should not be thicker than 6.7 cm, the edge must not be wider than 4 cm, and the face should not exceed 10.79 cm in width.

Both Narine's and Nortje’s bats went beyond the allowed size limits, leading to these unusual stoppages in the game.