Case Studies

New cricket law for on-field offences

by Mark Rowe

Security officers and stewards by the dozen are routine at international cricket matches; but only off the field of play. In thousands of matches around the UK, players police themselves, besides abiding by the decisions of the two on-field umpires (and a third umpire for professional, televised matches).

But despite the phrase ‘it’s just not cricket’ for anything ill-mannered, over the years professional cricketers have deliberately run into each other, waved their bat menacingly, and made gestures when the batsman is out, and sworn and made threats generally. At the club and village level, games have been called off in the UK due to outbreaks of violence. The Australian batsman David Warner famously punched the England batsman Joe Root in 2013; but at least that was in a bar in Birmingham and not on the field (?!).

A new Law of the game, ‘Players’ conduct’, was announced in April, and comes into force on October 1, giving what the MCC as the club responsible for the game’s laws describes as an ‘in-match consequence for poor on-field behaviour’. For the changes in full, visit https://www.lords.org/.

In detail, the law 42 offers ‘on-field sanctions to deal with deteriorating levels of behaviour’. Four levels of offences have been created, with level four as the most (an actual assault). The laws drafters say that the penalties are meant as deterrents, and ‘would only rarely be applied’.

Briefly, the lowest level one covers excessive appealing, obscene words or gestures; the umpire would give a warning, and if repeated, a five run penalty to the opposition. Level two is more serious dissent, again obscene words or actions, or throwing the ball at someone; again, the umpire gives five runs to the opposition. Level three is intimidating an umpire, or threatening to assault someone else. An offender is suspended for a number of overs, depending on the length of the match, plus five penalty runs. In a level four offence, an assault, the player is removed from the field for the rest of the match; and five runs go to the opposition.

In all cases, the umpire calls ‘time’ to halt the match and will involve the fielding captain, who may be told to remove the offending fielder. The umpire won’t flash red or yellow cards as in football; instead he will make signals (to the scorer, not the player). It starts with the umpire putting an arm out to the side of the body and repeatedly raising it and lowering it. For level three offences, this is followed by raising both hands, all fingers spread, to shoulder height, palms facing towards the scorers. For level four, the first part is followed by raising an index finger, held at shoulder height, to the side of the body.

If the captain will not co-operate, the umpire can award the match to the other team; or abandon the match, if both captains won’t co-operate and the matter cannot be resolved.

The system was trialled in three county leagues and some university cricket in the summer of 2016. As ever in cricket, this law comes with some minutiae, such as; what if the offender sent off is a runner, on the field to run for a batsman who is injured and cannot run between the wickets? If you’re the batsman, you can’t have a new runner.

Fraser Stewart, MCC’s Laws Manager, said: “MCC has left no stone unturned in researching and redrafting the new Laws of Cricket and has done so in order to make the Laws work in a way that makes sense to players, umpires and spectators.

“The Laws are applicable worldwide so they need to be as simple as possible to understand and inclusive to all. The [MCC] Club hopes to encourage interest in the game at all levels and believes these new Laws are reflective of the present time and easier for cricketers and umpires to interpret.”

Pictured; Grace Road, Leicester, the home of Leicestershire county cricket club.

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