Digvesh Rathi has celebrated wickets in extravegant style in IPL 2025© X (Twitter)
Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) spinner Digvesh Rathi has impressed many with his bowling in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. Digvesh has often given his team wickets at crucial intervals in this campaign. Bought for a small fee of INR 30 lakh in the mega auction, Digvesh’s celebrations after taking wickets in the T20 league have probably cost the franchise more than what they paid to avail of his services. While the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) hasn’t shied away from penalizing Rathi, former New Zealand cricketer Simon Doull feels the punishments have been unfair.
Doull, who is one of the experts at the ongoing IPL season 18, claims that he has seen senior India stars do much worse than Rathi has. Yet, it was the LSG spinner who was reprimanded twice while other big name players’ actions were ignored.
Digvesh Rathi celebration#KKRvsLSG pic.twitter.com/4ioBpYmsfw
— Ashish (@Ashish2____) April 8, 2025
“The team have got to be paying that (the fines). I don’t like it. I love the celebrations, I don’t think he has done anything at all wrong. I’ve seen senior Indian players do way worse, be in your face, and not get a fine. They are making an example out of a young man who is what, making a note in his notebook?” Doull said in a chat on Cricbuzz.
Digvesh first started the sign-off celebration after he dismissed Punjab Kings batter Priyansh Arya. It was later revealed that Digves and Priyansh are good friends, while the celebratory act from the LSG spinner was nothing but banter between the two. Yet, the board decided to penalise Rathi.
“Priyansh Arya (who Digvesh dismissed to bring out the celebration for the first time) is his very good friend. He did it on a friendly note, but since he is on the verge of suspension, I hope he doesn’t repeat it,” Shahbaz Ahmed, fellow LSG spinner, had said.
Rathi changed his celebration a little when the Lucknow franchise took on Kolkata Knight Riders in an IPL league game on Tuesday. The spinner did the signature celebration on the ground instead of in front of the player on his hand, hoping not to see the board fine him this time.
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