India's former spinner Harbhajan Sindh sparked a racism row after controversially comparing England fast bowler Jogra Archer to 'black taxi'.His statement came during the commentary for the IPL 2025 match between Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). The incident happened during the 18th over of the first innings, when Archer was bowling to SRH batters Ishan Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen. Harbhajan's controversial comment came after the South Africa international smashed consecutive boundaries against Archer on the second and third ball of the over. 

“London me kaali taxi ka meter tez bhaagta hai, Aur yaha pe Archer sahab ka meter bhi tez bhaaga hai (Like the meter of London’s black taxis, Archer’s meter has also been on the higher side),” Harbhajan quipped on air. The on-air remark left fans fuming on social media, and they called for his immediate suspension from the IPL 2025 commentary panel. The right-arm pacer had an expensive outing in his first game in IPL 2025, after conceding 76 runs without picking a wicket in the match against Hyderabad.

His bowling figures turned out to be the most expensive returns in IPL history, as he went past Mohit Sharma's 0/73 for Gujarat Titans against Delhi Capitals last year. On the contrary, it was a record day for Sunrisers, who notched up their four 250-plus totals in T20 cricket, the most-ever by a team, surpassing India and Surrey. However, they missed out on breaking their own IPL record for the highest team total by just two runs after scoring 286 for six against Rajasthan. They had scored 287/3 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru last year. Ishan Kishan played a key role for the Sunrisers, scoring his maiden century in the IPL, which came in just 45 balls.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)