Delhi Capitals’ Kyle Jamieson given an IPL ‘demerit point’ for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi send-off
Monday, 4 May 2026
Errant Kiwi drivers are familiar with demerit points. So too, is Black Caps bowler Kyle Jamieson, although his had nothing to do with getting behind the wheel.
Jamieson was hit with an official warning and a demerit point by the Indian Premier League after what was deemed an “aggressive” send-off of 15-year-old batting prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi during their match at the weekend.
Bowling for Delhi Capitals in just his second match of this year’s IPL, against Rajasthan Royals, Jamieson skittled Sooryavanshi second ball with a pinpoint yorker, after he’d hit his first delivery for four.
An ecstatic Jamieson rushed towards the youngster and, according to the Times of India: “Jamieson celebrated with an aggressive clap and walked close to the batter, locking eyes in a manner deemed confrontational. The send-off, directed at the 15-year-old, was seen as excessive and potentially provocative.”
Match referee Rajeev Seth imposed the sanction after Jamieson was found to have committed a level one breach of article 2.5 of the IPL’s code of conduct, which relates to “using language, actions or gestures which disparage or which could provoke an aggressive reaction from another player in the match.”
Jamieson accepted the sanction.
He said in a video on the IPL website about bowling to Sooryavanshi: “I don't think I have ever been so fearful of a 15-year-old kid in my life. But yeah, we have obviously done a little bit of planning going into the game. It was nice that it paid off.”
It was a rare failure for Sooryavanshi, whose date of birth is listed as March 27, 2011. He sits fourth on the IPL run charts with 404 at a mind-boggling strike rate of 238.
Jamieson finished with figures of 1-48 as Delhi won by seven wickets.
His Black Caps T20 team-mate Finn Allen was recalled to the Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday night for a brief, power-packed cameo.
Allen smashed 29 off 13 balls and helped take 27 off an over by Australian test skipper Pat Cummins, playing for Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Allen went 6, 2, 6, 4, 4 off Cummins before the bowler had the last laugh, having the Kiwi caught on at deep mid-wicket.
Chasing 166, KKR cruised to victory by seven wickets for just their third win of the season.
Allen blasted 298 runs at a strike rate of 200 in New Zealand’s run to the T20 world Cup final in India but has struggled for impact in the IPL.
In six innings he is averaging 18.33 with a top score of 37.
Black Caps team-mate Tim Seifert, who was second-top runscorer at the T20 World Cup with 326, has only had three innings for KKR for scores of 19, 0 and 0. Another Black Cap, Rachin Ravindra, is yet to appear for KKR this season.