Rahul Tewatia for Gujarat Titans - (Source: ScreenGrab/Sportstar)
In the ongoing IPL 2026 match between the Punjab Kings and the Gujarat Titans, Rahul Tewatia landed in trouble, which resulted in a small delay. The GT batter violated a massive IPL rule, for which the on-field umpire took strong action.
For the unversed, Punjab Kings won the toss and asked Gujarat Titans to bat first at their home ground in New Chandigarh. The Shubman Gill-led side got off to a great start but lost their way in the middle and towards the death.
Notably, GT were going strong with 83/2 after 9.2 overs, but eventually scored just 162 runs on the board. Now shedding light back on Rahul Tewatia, the southpaw struggled and scored just 11 (10), which featured a solitary four.
Rahul Tewatia Walks with an Illegal Bat
Rahul Tewatia walked to bat when GT were struggling for 144/5. However, when he came to bat, the umpires followed protocol and checked Tewatia’s bat. The on-field official took the willow and tried passing it through the bat gauge.
Much to everyone’s surprise, the bat didn’t go through the gauge, and the umpire asked Tewatia to change his bat. The southpaw quickly signalled the dressing room to send another legal bat. Notably, it was the first instance in this IPL when a batter failed the bat test.
On Sunday, March 29, in the match between MI and KKR, Rohit Sharma nearly had a similar incident, but his bat crossed the gauge on the third or fourth attempt.
Why Did BCCI Introduce Bat Check Rule In IPL?
Notably, the rule was implemented in IPL 2025 when the umpires were asked to check the bats on the ground. BCCI implemented this rule in a bid to step up the vigilance in restricting the use of oversized bats.
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As per the rules, a player’s bat width must not exceed 4.25 inches and the depth must not exceed 2.64 inches. Moreover, even the edges of the bat should not exceed 1.56 inches.
In 2025, An Indian Express report stated that certain players were found using oversized bats, thus prompting the BCCI to implement the counter measures in the already-explosive T20 format and the high-scoring nature of Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket.
Rahul Tewatia's IPL Career Towards Business End
The 32-year-old was retained by Gujarat Titans for 4 crores. However, his performance is not justifying the price tag. Notably, in 2025, he scored just 99 runs in 12 innings. IPL 2024 was Tewatia's last great season, where he scored 188 runs in nine innings.
At this point, fingers are being raised on Tewatia's place in the team. If the southpaw fails to return to his best, then there are chances that he might be dropped from the team mid-season. At the time of writing this article, PBKS are cruising towards a comfortable win and require just 82 runs to win in 66 balls.
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