The first season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) kicked off back in 2008 and it really took the cricket world by storm. It was filled with excitement and has become one of the most talked-about cricket tournaments out there. Unfortunately, that first season also brought with it the infamous slapgate incident that many fans remember all too well. In a tense moment during a match between King XI Punjab (which is now known as Punjab Kings) and the Mumbai Indians, Harbhajan Singh, who was the captain of the Mumbai team at the time, ended up slapping S Sreesanth. The whole ordeal left Sreesanth in tears, and if you watched the videos going around after the incident, you could see players like Kumar Sangakkara trying to console him, which really made it even more heartbreaking.
As a result of that incident, Harbhajan was suspended for the rest of the season, which was a big deal at the time. Fast forward to today, 17 years later, and Harbhajan has come out once again to apologize for what happened. A fan recently shared that old video of the slap on X, which used to be Twitter, and asked Harbhajan to share his thoughts. He responded by reposting the video and said, “This wasn’t right, bhai. It was my mistake. Shouldn’t have done this. But galti hui; insaan hu, Bhagwaan nahi, which translates to I made a mistake; I’m just human, not a God.
How about this one bhajji sirpic.twitter.com/EMqKmJ16EB
— innocent tom (@sonit3007) March 30, 2025
It’s worth noting that this isn’t the first time he’s apologized for that moment. Over the years, there seems to have been some healing, and both players have made amends and are on friendly terms now, which is nice to see.
Switching gears to the ongoing IPL season, the Mumbai Indians have hit a bit of a rough patch. They recently faced their second loss in a row this season after losing to Gujarat Titans by 36 runs. Hardik Pandya, the captain of the Mumbai side, expressed his frustrations after the game, noting, “It’s tough to piece things together. In both batting and bowling, I think we were 15-20 runs short. We were not sharp in the field and made some basic mistakes that cost us about 20-25 runs. When it comes to T20 matches, that’s a big deal.”
Pandya acknowledged the skill of the Gujarat openers, saying they batted with great control and didn’t take too many risks, which helped them put runs on the board efficiently. “We were always trying to catch up after that. Right now, we all need to take some responsibility. It’s still early in the season, so hopefully, our batters can step up soon. The pitch conditions made it tricky. Some deliveries were a bit unpredictable, making it hard for the batters. The Gujarat bowlers executed their plans perfectly, he added.
So, amidst all the drama from years back and the current struggles of the Mumbai team, the IPL continues to bring about rich narratives and intense rivalries, making it such a captivating event for cricket lovers.
