Kolkata Knight Riders’ Sunil Narine and Anrich Nortje became the first couple of players to be denied usage of their first-choice bats as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) intensifies its ‘bat-check’ regime. The KKR duo failed the gauge check during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 match against Punjab Kings on Tuesday. A few other batters’ bats were also checked, but only Narine and Nortje failed the test. IPL governor Arun Dhumal has broken his silence on the matter, asserting what the ‘way forward’ is going to be in the T20 league.

Bat checks have been in place for a long time, but on-field tests is something the BCCI has introduced this season. Just as certain players prepare to walk onto the field, umpires randomly turn up to give their bats’ sizes. Even on the field, Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya once went through a bat check.

“Nobody should feel that somebody’s got an undue advantage. The BCCI and IPL have always taken all initiatives in this direction so that the fairness of the game is maintained. We have used technology to the maximum to make sure that all decisions can be reviewed so that the games don’t get unfairly affected. The idea behind this initiative is to ensure that the spirit of the game is maintained,” Dhumal told The Indian Express on the matter.

With scores in IPL crossing the 200-run mark more often now, there has been plenty of debate around the balance between the bat and the ball. Oversized bats have also become an issue. The same was admitted by an international batter.

“They bulk up the lower part of the bat since that is the area of the bat where the batsmen try to make contact with the ball. More wood around the ‘sweet spot’ and less wood close to the handle gives more power to strokes,” an international batsman, aware of the problems, told the paper.