Umpire KILLED mid-match amid T20 World Cup 2026 as horrific bee attack unfolds

Umpires are as important on a cricket field as the players. Over the years, several officials have made a name for themselves by featuring and umpiring in international matches. On Wednesday, a shocking incident happened in Kanpur after an umpire died on the field during a match.

Manik Gupta, a senior umpire for the Kanpur Cricket Association (KCA), died during a match on Wednesday due to a swarm of bees attacking the Sapru ground in Shuklaganj Unnao, stinging both umpires and players on the pitch. This incident is one of the rarest incidents on a cricket field, as it has happened that any umpire has died like this.

Umpire dies of bee stings

Manik Gupta was 65 and officiating at a KDMA league match between YMCC and Paramount when the bees attacked. Many cricketers and the former were caught in the attack and severely wounded. Alongside him, another official, Jagdish Sharma, was in whites, and the swarm hovered around them for nearly 10 minutes.

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The veteran official was taken to two private hospitals in Shuklaganj in Unnao, next to Lala Lajpat Rai hospital (LLR), and finally from there to Laxmipat Singhania Institute of Cardiology Kanpur, where doctors later declared him dead. Manik Gupta, who resides at Pheelkhana, has been part of KCA's umpiring panel for 30 years.

KCA chairman Sanjay Kapoor said it is a tragic incident. He said (as quoted by TOI): "The senior umpire of KCA was dedicated to the game. The KCA family shares every sorrow and stands with the bereaved family. All possible help will be provided to his family." His last rites will be performed on Thursday.

The Super 8 stage begins on Sunday

The T20 World Cup 2026 has entered the Super 8 stages. The group stage matches are nearly over; only four matches are left to be played. Fans have got their 8 teams for the upcoming round: South Africa, India, Zimbabwe, and the West Indies are in Group 1 as they are pre-seeded as per the rankings, with Zimbabwe replacing Australia, as they were knocked out.

In Group 2, England, New Zealand, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka have been seeded. With both groups set and the matches scheduled to begin on February 22. Each team will play the other team from their group, and the top two teams from each group will secure a place in the semi-finals.

2024 T20 World Cup finalists take on each other

The matches will be exciting as all the teams in the competition have been playing a good brand of cricket. The two finalists of the previous edition, India and South Africa, are drawn in the same group as they will be meeting each other for the first time in this competition on February 22, which is scheduled to start from 7 PM IST.

During the same day in the day game, co-hosts Sri Lanka will be facing New Zealand. With both teams having quality spinners and depth in their batting, with a few inform batters, this game is going to be interesting. The match is set to start at 3 PM IST.

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