Dale Steyn questions IPL's handwritten note celebration trend

Dale Steyn believes the handwritten note celebration trend in the Indian Premier League (IPL) may have run its course after LSG's Akash Singh pulled out another message during his team's IPL 2026 game against CSK on Friday. The moment came during Lucknow Super Giants’ match against Chennai Super Kings at the Ekana Stadium. Playing his first match of the season, Akash made an immediate impact by removing CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sanju Samson and Urvil Patel to put Chennai under pressure early in the innings. After dismissing Gaikwad, the left-arm pacer celebrated by taking out a folded note from his pocket. The message on the paper read: “#Akki on fire – Akash knows how to take wickets in T20 game". The note celebration trend first became popular last season when Abhishek Sharma displayed a handwritten message for fans during a match for Sunrisers Hyderabad. Since then, several players have used similar celebrations. Earlier this season, Raghu Sharma used the same style of celebration, while Urvil Patel dedicated a note to his father after a performance. However, Steyn did not appear impressed with the trend. Posting on X after Akash’s celebration, the former South Africa pacer suggested the idea had lost its appeal. “Time to put the papers away. It ain’t trending no more. Actually, to be honest, never really was," Steyn posted on X.

Interestingly, even LSG head coach Justin Langer said he did not know about Akash’s plan. During the broadcast, commentators asked Langer about the celebration and the Australian admitted he had no prior information about it, while joking that the team management may have to look into the matter. Akash later clarified that there was no deeper reason behind the celebration. “It just gives me motivation. There is no reason behind it. Whatever motivates me during the game, I’ll keep backing it," Akash was quoted as saying.