Injured umpire leads to officiating mess in Ranji Trophy final in Rajkot

Chettithody Shamshuddin was struck by a ball thrown by a Bengal fielder, leading to KN Ananthapadhmanabhan having to stand at both ends during the clash with Saurashtra

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The Ranji Trophy final in Rajkot was thrown into disarray during the opening day after one of the standing umpires was forced off the field after being struck by a throw from a fielder.

Chettithody Shamshuddin was eventually forced away from middle due to swelling on his midriff after being hit by a Bengal fielder during their clash with Saurashtra following the fall of a wicket.

"He didn't look comfortable taking the field because of pain, so we took him to hospital and he underwent a medical examination," a Saurashtra Cricket Association official told ESPNcricinfo. "He was advised a week's rest, so he will return home."

While Shamshuddin is expected to make a full recovery, it led to an issue with the structure of the officiating team.

Piyush Kakkar was enlisted as Shamshuddin's replacement, however, being from Rajkot was only allowed to umpire at square leg because of BCCI rules regarding the presence of neutral umpires.

Therefore, for an entire session, KN Ananthapadhmanabhan stood at both ends. The situation was eased later in the day when Sundaram Ravi took to the field having previously been the third umpire.

Ravi could not be called upon earlier because he was the only official able to man the Decision Review System. Shamsuddin filled the role after the lunch interval, allowing Ravi to take to the field. 

There was no fourth umpire in attendance but Yashwant Barde will be in attendance from day three onwards and is due to take to the field alongside Ananthapadhmanabhan for the conclusion to the match.

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