Rajat Patidar catch controversy: Were umpires right in upholding Jason Holder's effort? Laws explained

Royal Challengers Bengaluru captain Rajat Patidar's dismissal during the team's loss to Gujarat Titans made headlines on Thursday as Jason Holder's catch was seen as being unfair by many fans.

Replays of the catch gave a feeling that the ball may have touched the ground while Holder was completing the catch. Even star RCB batter Virat Kohli was seen having an intense chat with fourth umpire right after the catch was deemed fair.

Below we take a look at what the law states on such catches and whether the umpires were right or not in giving Patidar out despite a controversial catch.

Rajat Patidar catch controversy: What exactly happened?

The incident took place in the eighth over of the match when Patidar was facing Arshad Khan. The RCB skipper flicked Khan high into the air, aiming to hit a six. However, due to poor connection, the ball stayed inside the deep backward square leg boundary where Holder dived to complete a spectacular catch.

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The on-field umpires sent the decision upstairs and the third umpire Abhijit Bhattacharya took a few looks at the catch before giving it out.

The RCB camp was not happy with the decision as Kohli and coach Andy Flower both were seen talking about the call with the fourth umpire. However, Patidar had to walk back with his wicket triggering a collapse for RCB.

Ultimately, the dismissal turned out to be a critical point and GT won the match by four wickets to hand RCB their third loss of the season.

What law says about such catches?

From watching the replays, it looked like the ball may have touched the ground when Holder was completing the catch. However, there was no conclusive evidence and the interpretation ultimately is done by the third umpire.

According to Law 33.2.2, a catch will be deemed fair if “the ball is held in the hand or hands of a fielder, even if the hand holding the ball is touching the ground, or is hugged to the body, or lodges in the external protective equipment worn by a fielder, or lodges accidentally in a fielder’s clothing.”

So, the third umpire believed that part of Holder's hand was separating the ball from the ground even if it could not be clearly seen.

Ashwin reveals why the catch was fair

Former India spinner R Ashwin also explained why the catch was fair and the umpire made the right decision.

"Jason Holder's hands is twice as big as mine. In his hands, the ball almost disappears. So, even if you guys can see the ball through the gap in his fingers, that does not mean that the ball has hit the floor. He has probably wrapped it around. The ball, perhaps, did not touch the ground," Ashwin said on his YouTube channel about the catch.

He also said that the decision ultimately rests with the third umpire who, he reminded, were highly experienced.

"If you are on the RCB side, you might feel that he is unlucky. If you look at it from the GT side, it is a clean out. But if you are viewing it as a neutral, it is completely fair catch," Ashwin concluded.