On a night when Punjab Kings pulled off a high-octane chase at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, its captain Shreyas Iyer walked away with a costly reminder of one of the IPL’s less glamorous battles: the clock.
Iyer has been fined Rs. 24 lakh after Punjab Kings was found guilty of maintaining a slow over-rate against Chennai Super Kings. It is the team’s second offence this season under the league’s Code of Conduct, and that matters, because repeat breaches stack up quickly, even if they no longer lead to suspensions.
So what exactly has changed?
The IPL has quietly rewritten how it polices over-rate offences.
In previous seasons, captains faced a one-match ban after three slow over-rate violations. That rule is now gone. Instead, the league has moved towards a system that prioritises financial penalties and in-game disadvantages over outright suspensions.
The shift mirrors the International Cricket Council’s approach, with the introduction of demerit points. Every sanction imposed by the match referee adds to a player’s or official’s tally, and those points stay on record for 36 months.
The threat, then, is less immediate but more cumulative, a slow burn rather than a sudden hit.What does the punishment look like now?
It is not just the captain who pays.
Under Article 2.22 of the IPL Code of Conduct:
The captain is fined Rs. 24 lakh for a second offence
Every other member of the playing XI, including the Impact Player, is fined Rs. 6 lakh or 25% of their match fee (whichever is lower)
There is also the possibility of in-match fielding restrictions, which can be far more damaging in tight contests than any post-match fine.
All of this unfolded even as Punjab Kings chased down 210 with eight balls to spare.
