IPL fights are not very often seen during matches, but whenever it happens, it makes headlines across the world. In 2014, a major clash occurred between Kieron Pollard and Mitchell Starc during an IPL match that is often remembered for the wrong reasons. This incident took place at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai when the Mumbai Indians (MI), led by Rohit Sharma, faced the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), captained by Virat Kohli.
During the 17th over of MI’s innings, Australian pacer Mitchell Starc who plays for RCB bowled a bouncer to Pollard, who missed the ball. Starc then sledded him, and in return, the Mumbai Indians all-rounder Pollard waved him off. However, things escalated when Pollard stopped Starc mid-run-up for the next delivery. In response, Starc bowled close to Pollard’s legs. This led Pollard to attempt to throw his bat at Starc, but it slipped from his hands and landed on the leg side.
Both players exchanged heated words after this incident after which the RCB fielders and umpires had to jump in to make things calm. The situation worsened when Starc taunted Pollard after he was run out. As a result, both players were fined for breaking the IPL’s code of conduct. Pollard was fined 75% of his match fee, while Starc was docked 50%.
They both admitted to committing level 2 offenses. Additionally, both team captains, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, were penalized for slow over-rates during the match. Despite the tension on the field, MI won the game by 19 runs, thanks to Rohit Sharma’s unbeaten score of 59. This altercation remains one of the most talked-about incidents in IPL history.
Talking about the match, Mumbai Indians were invited to bat first by RCB after losing the toss. They put in a total of strong total of 187/5 in their 20 overs.
Ben Dunk was the first batsman to get out, where he scored 15 runs from 14 balls. Wicketkeeper Chidambaram Gautam added 30 runs from 28 balls, while Ambati Rayudu made 9 runs before being bowled by Ashok Dinda. Captain Rohit Sharma was the star of MI’s innings, scoring an unbeaten 59 runs from 35 balls, hitting 3 fours and 4 sixes. Kieron Pollard also made a big contribution and scored 43 runs from 31 balls before being run out.
For RCB, Harshal Patel, Varun Aaron, Yuzvendra Chahal, and Ashok Dinda each took a wicket, while Mitchell Starc bowled well but didn’t get any wickets.
Chasing 188, RCB got off to a good start with Chris Gayle scoring 38 runs from 24 balls, hitting 3 fours and 3 sixes. Parthiv Patel also helped with 26 runs from 19 balls. However, MI’s bowlers took important wickets regularly. Captain Virat Kohli scored 35 runs from 28 balls before being caught by Corey Anderson off Pawan Suyal’s bowling. AB de Villiers, Yuvraj Singh, and Rilee Rossouw didn’t make big scores and were dismissed quickly.
RCB struggled to keep up with the required run rate and kept losing wickets. Lasith Malinga and Jasprit Bumrah bowled brilliantly, taking 2 wickets each, while Harbhajan Singh also grabbed 2 key wickets, where he dismissed Gayle and Patel. Despite being a bit expensive, Pawan Suyal and Kieron Pollard helped put pressure on RCB.
In the end, RCB only managed to score 168/8 in their 20 overs, falling 19 runs short of MI’s target. Mumbai Indians won the match. Rohit Sharma for his brilliant fifty picked as Man Of The Match.
However, after that Pollard and Starc never fought again or argued with each other in the IPL. Starc missed a couple of seasons, sometimes due to injury and sometimes for World Cup Preparation. Currently, Kieron Pollard is serving Mumbai Indians as coaching staff, on the other hand, Starc was seen playing for Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2024.
