The India-Pakistan match on October 23 served as the trigger for the dead-ball debate.
Legendary Australian batter and former India coach Greg Chappell has asked for a revision of the game's rules, pleading that the game is already skewed in favor of batters. He argued that if the ball beats the bat and hits the stumps during a free hit, it should be declared dead.
During the nail-biting final over between India and Pakistan on October 23, Mohammad Nawaz bowled an over-the-waist no-ball. On the subsequent delivery, he managed to hit the stumps, but the ball ricocheted off the stumps and Virat Kohli ran three off byes. This has sparked a controversy.
Why the free-hit ball wasn't declared dead as soon as it struck the stumps was a point of contention among several former cricketers.
To stop more runs from being scored off the same delivery, several including Chappell have argued that if a batter is bowled off a free hit, it should result in a dead ball.
"I would review that rule to give the bowler credit for the dead ball if he is good enough to beat the bat and hit the stumps," Chappell wrote in his column for 'The Sydney Morning Herald'.
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There were also discussions around whether the fourth ball of the last over of the game was an over-the-waist no-ball. Chapell questioned whether a ball that is hit for a six should be adjudged a no-ball.
"There is no doubt that the umpires got their calls right in the glare of the spotlight, but one must ask: is a ball that is hit for six really a no-ball? The height of delivery is monitored closely, especially in late overs, because it was often been used as a run-saving delivery. But it can't be argued on this occasion that that was the outcome.
The next ball was wide. Kohli was then bowled off the free-hit but as the ball ricocheted off the stumps towards the third-man fielder Kohli and Dinesh Karthik collected three bye runs.”
Talking about the 3 runs off byes, the former cricketer wrote, "As for the three byes off the stumps, one must ask: is that really what the tour conditions are trying to achieve? In a game where the balance is already well in favor of the batsman, what more is a bowler meant to do?
If a bowler is good enough to bowl the perfect yorker, as Nawaz did, why does he need to be punished any further? (It is much like NZ being punished for accidental overthrows from the opponents' bat which cost them the 50-over World Cup Final at The Oval in 2019.)," he wrote.
The MCC's Laws of Cricket states that "The ball becomes dead when:-
"20.1.1.1 it is finally settled in the hands of the wicket-keeper or of the bowler.
"20.1.1.2 a boundary is scored.
"20.1.1.3 a batter is dismissed. The ball will be deemed to be dead from the instant of the incident causing the dismissal.
(PTI INPUTS)