IPL 2025 Controversy: Harbhajan Singh Under Fire for Allegedly Racist Remark Against Jofra Archer
Archer had a tough outing with the ball, conceding 76 runs in his four-over spell without claiming a wicket.
Former India cricketer Harbhajan Singh has sparked a major controversy after making a remark during the IPL 2025 match between Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) on March 23.
While commentating in the 18th over, Harbhajan compared England fast bowler Jofra Archer’s performance to London’s black taxis, saying, “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).”
The comment was made during a Hindi broadcast on Star Sports, as Archer was being hit for consecutive boundaries by SRH’s Heinrich Klaasen.
The remark drew immediate backlash on social media, with fans accusing Harbhajan of making a racially insensitive comment.
Many called for his immediate suspension from the IPL 2025 commentary panel, citing the irony given Harbhajan’s own past experiences with racism during his playing career.
Harbhajan Singh (@harbhajan_singh) has called @JofraArcher a “black London taxi” during live commentary.
Isa Guha was made to apologise on air for her comments about Bumrah. Will the BCCI or Star now ask Harbhajan to apologise live on air? Will the ECB say anything? 💰 #IPL pic.twitter.com/ANGxvsCMlb
— M (@anngrypakiistan) March 23, 2025
Harbhajan Singh has called Jofra Archer a black taxi driver with a high meter value just now in the Hindi commentary. This is vile and disgusting. Please ban him.
— ` (@FourOverthrows) March 23, 2025
Obviously in the UK we get the #IPL2025 world feed so didn’t hear Harbhajan Singh and his awful racist comment about Archer first hand.
However plenty did and it’s time that IPL and Star Sports take a stance and take him off air.— Erika Morris (@ErikaMorris79) March 23, 2025
Archer, who was playing his first match of the season, had a tough outing, conceding 76 runs in four overs without taking a wicket, marking the most expensive spell in IPL history.
Meanwhile, SRH posted a mammoth total of 286/6, with Ishan Kishan scoring a blistering 44-ball century on his debut for the franchise. Despite a valiant effort from Rajasthan Royals, they fell short by 44 runs.
As of now, Harbhajan has not publicly responded to the criticism, but the incident has reignited discussions about racial sensitivity in sports commentary.
Meanwhile, Sunrisers Hyderabad kicked off their IPL 2025 campaign with a commanding 44-run win at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. Ishan Kishan starred with a century, propelling SRH to 286—the second-highest total in IPL history. In reply, Rajasthan Royals were restricted to 242. Archer had a tough outing with the ball, conceding 76 runs in his four-over spell without claiming a wicket.
