Dead-ball law must be revisited during ICC Cricket Committee meeting

In the Sunrisers Hyderabad vs. Rajasthan Royals game, a tense last-ball LBW call led to a batsman’s referral, which meant the ball was dead, potentially offering a strategic advantage to opposition captains and coaches.

Giving context: If the dead ball law has to be referred to the MCC, then it would be a lot better if there were some former players who have played in the IPL and other T20 leagues in the world to be brought in for their experience.  | Photo Credit: AP

This season has once again shown the gulf between the domestic T20 leagues and the IPL. The same can be said for Under-19 boys who are suddenly finding themselves exposed in the men’s game. There are always exceptions, of course, but the majority, on whom there were huge expectations and who went for crores of rupees, have failed to deliver.

This should not come as a surprise because the difference in standards of both batting and bowling in the domestic T20 league, Under-19 cricket, and the IPL is huge. Sure, some of these boys, with a bit more experience, can go on to become good players capable of holding their own even in the IPL. That said, to give some of these uncapped players crores of rupees is probably pushing their career progress back considerably because suddenly the focus goes missing.

It is perfectly understandable for a young player who hasn’t seen such riches to get carried away by the glitz, glamour, and accessories that such sudden wealth can bring. If they have a family that can help them maintain their feet on the ground, then these boys, who are likely to fall with a thud, can be lifted and made to realise their potential a few years later.

One of the reasons that I have been propagating a salary cap for the uncapped player is mainly because there have been so many promising players at the junior level who, having acquired sudden name and fame, have gone astray and have been lost to Indian cricket. Again, when you compare what a Ranji Trophy player gets, even if he plays a full season of 35+ days but does not play IPL, he will end up earning a fraction of what the uncapped IPL guys get for playing 14 to 16 days of cricket. The BCCI is considering increasing the playing fees for the Ranji Trophy and domestic cricket, which is fantastic news, but like I said earlier, they still know that however well they perform in the Ranji Trophy or domestic cricket, one or two performances in the IPL is the shortest route to the India cap.

This year, the IPL has caused a fair bit of debate about the Impact Player and the DRS for wide balls and bouncers from some of the captains and coaches of the franchises, and this will certainly be a topic of debate for the BCCI and IPL Governing Council before the mega auction later in the year. In the Sunrisers Hyderabad vs. Rajasthan Royals game, there was a thrilling nail-biting last-ball finish where the batter was declared LBW, and he asked for a referral. The moment that happened, the ball became dead, and even if the ball had gone to the boundary, no runs would have been added. This loophole can be exploited by many a canny captain and coach who are defending runs, particularly in the last over. This is again something that should be up for debate, but it is pretty certain that the ICC will not be able to implement it for the ensuing T20 World Cup. It can surely come up for discussion at the ICC Cricket Committee meeting that is likely to happen during the T20 World Cup, either in the USA or the West Indies.

If the law has to be referred to the MCC, then it would be a lot better if some former players who have played in the IPL and other T20 leagues in the world were brought in for their experience. The MCC makes laws, which are then to be followed by every cricket club, state, and country.

Therefore, a committee that is going to have the biggest impact on the laws of the game must have people who have played it at the highest level and should be from different countries and not just primarily from England. I am just giving you a list of the MCC Laws Committee. I am sure they are all perfectly capable people, but apart from the former umpires, Sundaram Ravi from India and Simon Taufel, nobody seems to have any international experience. The list is as follows:

Alan Fordham (Chair)

Deborah Burns

Bob Hampshire

Lt. Col David Jukes

Paul McMahon

Claire Polosak

Sundaram Ravi

Surendiran Shanmugam

Simon Taufel

Dear readers, do you think that recently retired former Test players from other countries should be included or not?