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Overthrow rules come under scrutiny but it cost New Zealand a World Cup

The cricketing world was upset after the on-field umpire Kumar Dharmasena awarded six runs to England after the ball went for four overthrows since they also ran for two runs.

Ben Stokes

Bengaluru, July 23: Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), the iconic custodians of cricket laws, is likely to review the overthrow rules in the game after the controversial-yet-decisive four overthrow runs saw England eventually winning the cricket World Cup against New Zealand at Lord's on July 14.

According to a report in The Sunday Times, Britain: "There is a feeling at MCC that overthrows are worth looking at when it next reviews the laws of the game, which is the responsibility of the MCC Laws sub-committee."

The cricketing world was upset after the on-field umpire Kumar Dharmasena awarded six runs to England after the ball went for four overthrows since they also ran for two runs.

Former umpire Simon Taufel later said England should have got five runs and not six since the two batsmen had not crossed when the fielder released the ball. That one run made a huge difference as England ended up tying the game and then won the trophy by virtue of hitting more boundaries. This happened after the super over too ended in a tie.

There was an eagerness to give the game a photo finish as the two teams refused to let it go and there was more than one tie (the scheduled game plus the super over). But in the zeal of doing so, the organisers hadn't kept in mind that the rules that were governing the game were not adequate and up to the mark. Instances like what had happened in the final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 would certainly turn the young spectators off if the problems are not rectified soon.

These instances will not help ODIs

After the advent of the T20Is, ODIs are loosing its appeal and if laws are not serving it well, then it is bound to slip further. Not many kids in New Zealand would find the game funny as starters and that is the danger that lurks.

It was shocking to see how an elite umpire could goof up runs the chasing side should get in a game that was played at the ultimate tier of international cricket. He later expressed his regret, but that would not give the Black Caps their maiden World Cup. Four years later, they would have to start afresh.

Cricket, in all the eagerness to become more appealing on July 14, was outsmarted by two grave rules - the overthrow and the boundary count. Yes, all sides knew who would win after the sixth ball of the second over in the super over saw yet another tie.

But these situations hardly come every day and when they come, they leave a devastating trail behind. Wimbledon now sees a tie-breaker in the fifth set (albeit at 12-12) that honours the time-bound era we live in. Why can't cricket be smarter than it is?

Let's start changing the laws before the game gets too untidy.

Story first published: Tuesday, July 23, 2019, 16:34 [IST]
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