The ongoing Tata Indian Premier League 2026 (Tata IPL 2026) recently witnessed a strange and bizarre moment during the match between Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad, which took social media by storm.
The whole controversy started when an SRH fan was seen doing the “lemon trick” in the crowd just before the wicket of Shivam Dubey. At first, it seemed like a random act, but what happened next sparked a bizarre debate around “paranormal practices” in the game of cricket.
‘Lemon trick’ sparks bizarre controversy in the stands at IPL 2026
At that time, Chennai Super Kings were still trying hard to chase 195 runs against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Shivam Dubey (21 runs on 16 balls) was batting well and the team needed 41 runs on 20 balls. CSK still had chances, but the game suddenly changed in Hyderabad.
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Dubey was bowled by Shakib Hussain’s fast yorker ball and after this the match slipped out of CSK’s hands. After this Prafulla Hinz dismissed Jamie Overton and SRH won the match by 10 runs.
Right after a “lemon trick” by an SRH fan in the stands, Dube was clean bowled by a precise yorker from Shakib Hussain, and the game slipped away from CSK. Soon after, Prafulla Hinz dismissed Jamie Overton, helping Sunrisers Hyderabad win the tight match by 10 runs.
Rumors of Shivam Dubey’s wicket timing and CSK’s complaint have gained momentum
The timing of the action caused the video to go viral on social media platforms, with fans linking Dubey’s dismissal to the “lemon trick” seen in the stands.
After the match, a letter started going viral on social media, claiming that CSK had complained to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) about unusual activity in the crowd during the match.
The letter talked about “unlawful practices” affecting the game. But later, reports revealed that the letter was fake, both IPL GC and CSK are yet to respond to that letter.
Lalit Modi explodes bomb on last IPL episode
Now this matter has been made more interesting by former IPL chairman Lalit Modi. He clearly said that the viral letter is fake, but at the same time he also made a big claim.
Modi said such activities were not new in the IPL and hinted that something like this had happened earlier also. The former chairman shared that an IPL franchise owner was involved in committing such acts against another team during the 2011 season.
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Modi even claimed that he had revealed that he had found strong evidence at that time and had also alerted the opposition team about it. He mentioned that all such hidden events may come to light in the future through some movie or series being planned by his team.
Lalit Modi posted,
I remember seeing a post of some team owner doing this to the opposing team. By doing this himself in the dressing room of the opposing team. I even alerted opposing team owners about this in the 2011 season – when it happened and I received an alert with solid evidence. I… https://t.co/jxmv84Nkwv
– Lalit Kumar Modi (@LalitKModi) 19 April 2026
There were many teams in that 2011 season, including now defunct teams like Deccan Chargers, Kochi Tuskers Kerala and Pune Warriors India, which has now made fans even more curious as to which team he was talking about.
Well, CSK is already going through a tough phase this season. The five-time champion team is struggling due to injuries and inconsistent performances. They have lost four out of six matches so far, and are currently placed seventh in the IPL 2026 points table.