Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) head coach Andy Flower has been fined 15% of his match fee for violating the Indian Premier League 2026 (IPL 2026) Code of Conduct during Match 54 against Mumbai Indians (MI). Flower breached Level 1 of the Code of Conduct for Players and Team Officials.
He violated article 2.3 of the Code, which addresses the “use of an audible obscenity during a match.” This incident took place during the second ball of the 18th over when Flower was seen arguing with the fourth umpire near the boundary.
Krunal Pandya hit a high ball towards long on, where Naman Dhir caught it and threw it to Tilak Varma before going over the boundary. Tilak failed to catch the relay, believing Dhir had touched the boundary with his foot.
To determine if Dhir actually touched the boundary, on-field umpires consulted with the third umpire, who confirmed that no part of the Mumbai fielder was touching the fence, ruling it a dot ball. The entire RCB camp expressed their discontent from the dugout.
RCB climbs to the top after beating MI
Upset by the situation, Andy Flower approached the fourth umpire to voice his frustration about the decision. During an animated discussion, he committed the offense. Flower acknowledged the violation and accepted the penalty from Match Referee Amit Sharma.
In the match, RCB defeated MI by two wickets and moved to the top of the IPL 2026 points table. Bhuvneshwar Kumar was named Player of the Match for taking four wickets (4/23 in 4 overs) and scoring 7* (2) in the final over, aiding RCB in chasing down 167 runs on the last ball.