Dharmesh Bhardwaj did all he could but he was unable to move out of the way in time with the ball hitting the right side of his face
Published: August 18, 2026, 5:13 PM IST
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Umpire gets hit by a ball, admitted to ICU in Delhi Premier League (DPL)(Credits: X)
A bizarre scene unfolded in the on-going third edition of the Delhi Premier League 2026 when an umpire needed thorough medical attention after getting hit by a ball during a match between East Delhi Riders and New Delhi Tigers at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.
The East Delhi outfit ultimately defeated New Delhi by a margin of 36 runs and while there were a couple of standout individual performers, the entire match was overshadowed by the injury of the on-field umpire named Dharmesh Bhardwaj, who was visibly in sheer pain after getting hit with the hard leather ball straight on his face.
The entire scene unfolded in the 18th over of the second innings during New Delhi Tigers’ unsuccessful chase of 197Number 6 batter Lakshay Thareja was batting at the crease when his down the track lofted straight drive off Ashish Meena went straight into umpire.
Dharmesh Bhardwaj did all he could but he was unable to move out of the way in time with the ball hitting the right side of his faceBhardwaj tried to duck down but the speed of the leather ball was viciousBhardwaj immediately asked for the medics to come on from the dugout.
Subsequently, Lakshay Thareja, who was the one to hit the ball, looked in absolute distress and had his hands over his head in sheer disbeliefHe ran to the other end to check on the umpire, who had previously endured a blow on his shoulder prior in the match.
Bhardwaj had to be ultimately admitted to Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in a nearby hospital for assessment, a report said.
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What happened in the East Delhi vs New Delhi match?
Meanwhile, the East Delhi Tigers successfully defended the total of 192, winning by 36 runs to climb up the DPL 2026 points tableThe Eastern outfit were powered to the 190+ total, thanks to the quickfire 30s of Vansh Mehra, Arpit Rana and Suryansh Raina and Mayank Rawat’s 40.
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In resposne, New Delhi Riders never got going as they were folded for just 156 off 19.2 oversThe only standout performer was skipper Himmat Singh, who remained the highest scorer with 31 off 20.
