Riyan Parag sparks outrage after controversial wicket celebration 'mocking' third umpire

Rajasthan Royals handed Lucknow Super Giants their second consecutive defeat on Sunday by winning the RR vs LSG. match no. 63 of the Indian Premier League 2022 on Sunday. RR earned a 24 runs victory after scoring 178/6 in the first innings and restricting LSG at 154/8 in the second. While the match witnessed many top performers for Rajasthan like Trent Boult, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Trent Boult, and Prasidh Krishna, youngster Riyan Parag also find himself on the headlines for a controversial matter.

In the penultimate over of the game, LSG allrounder Marcus Stoinis hit Obed McCoy for a lofted shot as Parag completed the catch on long-on. The youngster pulled off a full stretch dive to claim the cath, before the replays confirmed that the ball had bounced and to the RR camp’s disappointment, Stoinis was given not out. Parag finally completed a clean catch to dismiss Stoinis in the final over of the game and put up a sarcastic celebration mocking the umpire.

Matthew Hayden criticizes Riyan Parag

After completing the catch, Parag took the ball too close to the ground, mocking the third umpire for the previous decision. Due to his gesture, Parag faced heat from Australian batter Matthew Hayden, who was a commentator of the match with Star Sports. “I gotta advice for you young man. Cricket is a very very long game we all have very long memories, never ever term fate because it comes around quickly," Hayden said in the live stream.

How did the Internet react to Riyan Parag's celebrations?

Parag’s act also received heat from the cricket lovers in India as fans asked him not to be disrespectful. Among the many tweets criticizing him, there were a few users who found nothing wrong with his celebrations. Fans cited the example of aggressive players like Virat Kohli and said the player should be supported. 

What else happened during the RR vs LSG match?

Meanwhile, courtesy of Parag's catch in the 20th over, LSG were reduced to 151/8 and eventually managed to score 154 runs only. Earlier in the first innings, Jaiswal hit 41 off 29 balls, while Padikkal and skipper Sanju Samson hit 39 and 32 runs respectively. Ravi Bishnoi took the maximum of two wickets for LSG, while Ayush Badoni and Jason Holder took one wicket each. Meanwhile, in the second innings, Deepak Hooda's handsome 59 runs off 39 balls went into the vein, and Boult, Krishna and McCoy took two wickets each for RR.

(Image: iplt20.com/BCCI)