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The East Delhi outfit ultimately defeated New Delhi by a margin of 36 runs and while there were a couple of standout individual performers, the entire match was overshadowed by the injury of the on-field umpire named Dharmesh Bhardwaj, who was visibly in sheer pain after getting hit with the hard leather ball straight on his face.

The entire scene unfolded in the 18th over of the second innings during New Delhi Tigers' unsuccessful chase of 197. Number 6 batter Lakshay Thareja was batting at the crease when his down the track lofted straight drive off Ashish Meena went straight into umpire.

Dharmesh Bhardwaj did all he could but he was unable to move out of the way in time with the ball hitting the right side of his face. Bhardwaj tried to duck down but the speed of the leather ball was vicious. Bhardwaj immediately asked for the medics to come on from the dugout.

Subsequently, Lakshay Thareja, who was the one to hit the ball, looked in absolute distress and had his hands over his head in sheer disbelief. He ran to the other end to check on the umpire, who had previously endured a blow on his shoulder prior in the match.

Bhardwaj had to be ultimately admitted to Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in a nearby hospital for assessment, a report said.

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