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Cricket world screams for rule changes after World Cup ‘joke’

After cricket legends slammed a great World Cup injustice, an explosive claim revealed New Zealand was robbed by an incorrect call.

Tyson OttoTyson Otto
@tottodtsport
5 min read
July 15, 2019 - 12:22PM
It wasn’t me. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)
It wasn’t me. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)

There is no better fuel for change than tragedy — and right now it’s at the top of the agenda of the cricketing world.

It will come as cold consolation to New Zealand’s “gutted” captain Kane Williamson, but the unfathomable circumstances under which his team was beaten without being bested in the dramatic final of the Cricket World Cup at Lord’s on Monday morning will not be allowed to be repeated if the outrage around the cricketing world is anything to go by.

Legends of the game are screaming for the tie-breaker rules that saw England crowned world champions to be scrapped after the hosts emerged victorious from the chaos on the back of scoring more boundaries than their opponents.

The outrage at the way the game was awarded to England was impossible for the ICC and the Marylebone Cricket Club (keepers of the laws of cricket) to ignore — and that was before dramatic revelations after the game that cast fresh doubt over whether the laws were correctly interpreted at the defining moment England was awarded six runs for an overthrow off the bat of star allrounder Ben Stokes in the dramatic final over.

Stokes’ desperate stomach slide for the crease as he came back for a second run looked to be a moment of golden luck for England as Martin Guptill’s throw struck Stokes’ bat and raced away to the boundary for four overthrows.

Following a long consultation between the on-field umpires, England was awarded six runs, two that were run and four for the boundary. Instead of needing a miracle with nine runs from three balls, Stokes only needed three runs from the final three balls.

SHOULD IT HAVE BEEN A FIVE?

Tom Latham watches the ball run to the boundary after ricocheting off Ben Stokes’ bat. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
Tom Latham watches the ball run to the boundary after ricocheting off Ben Stokes’ bat. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

The game-changing interpretation of the rules has now been cast into doubt.

ESPN Cricinfo reports the MCC laws surrounding extra runs and dead ball situations actually suggests England should only have received five runs from Stokes’ so-called “bat of god” incident.

The Law which governs the rules of fielder overthrows suggests umpire Kumar Dharmasena was wrong to award England six runs because Stokes and non-striker Adil Rashid had not crossed at the time Guptill’s throw from the out-field left his hands.

Law 19.8 claims the second run in progress should not have counted because the boundary resulted from a throw that had already been fired into the keeper before Stokes and Rashid crossed.

The law states:

If the boundary results from an overthrow or from the wilful act of a fielder, the runs scored shall be:

— any runs for penalties awarded to either side

— and the allowance for the boundary

— and the runs completed by the batsmen, together with the run in progress if they had already crossed at the instant of the throw or act.

The extra run allowed England to tie New Zealand’s first innings score of 241.

England's Ben Stokes immediately apologised for the rebound.
England's Ben Stokes immediately apologised for the rebound.

Without the second run being added to England’s total, New Zealand would right now be world champions.

The ambiguity of the laws will only further rub salt into New Zealand’s wounds.

“Just gutted,” Williamson said after the game, before word of the rule interpretation broke.

“Laugh or cry, it’s your choice, isn’t it? It’s not anger. There’s a lot of disappointment.”

BOUNDARY COUNTBACK BLASTED

Under World Cup final rules, the tied match went to a Super Over in which the best batsmen of one side try to score the most runs against a nominated bowler from the other.

Both teams scored 15 runs in that over but England won on a countback of boundaries scored during the match.

It was the cruellest way for New Zealand’s giant-killing run through the tournament to end.

Cricket greats from around the world were left fuming at the injustice.

Even Stokes’ New Zealand father questioned the rule that handed World Cup final glory to England.

Gerard Stokes, a former Kiwis rugby league international, said on Monday morning the trophy should have been shared and the match should have been recorded as a draw.

He remains a New Zealand supporter at heart and was left bemused by the rule which left England victorious despite both teams scoring the same total after 50 overs (241) and then again in the super over (15).

The hosts were deemed winners courtesy of scoring more boundaries in the match.

“I’m not sure about something that important hanging on that,” Stokes Snr told the New Zealand Herald.

“They could have shared the trophy but that doesn’t seem to be how things are done these days.

“It has to be one of the greatest cricket games ever played, but I think it’s a shame there has to be a loser.”

Christchurch-born Ben Stokes lived in New Zealand until age 12 before the family shifted to England when Gerard took up a rugby league coaching job.

He’s now at the centre of the biggest controversy in cricket since Australia’s ball-tampering saga from the 2018 Tour of South Africa.

PUNTERS OFFERED A REFUND

Australian betting agency Sportsbet announced on Monday it is refunding punters who backed New Zealand after the farcical finish to the 2019 World Cup. In all, 11,458 Sportsbet punters have been refunded $426,223.

The exact moment the hearts of New Zealanders ripped in two.
The exact moment the hearts of New Zealanders ripped in two.

Punters who backed New Zealand in both the head to head and the outright tournament market will be refunded their stakes in bonus bets.

“Let’s not beat around the bush, for a World Cup to be decided in that manner is an absolute disgrace, and the punters shouldn’t have to pay for the ineptness of the ICC,’’ said sportsbet.com.au’s Rich Hummerston.

Williamson was also asked if there needs to be a change to the laws of cricket surrounding overthrow runs. A gentleman’s rule has traditionally dictated that once a throw rebounds off a batsman or bat that no further runs are taken.

However there is no official rule to protect this, and the umpires had no choice but to award the extra four runs to Stokes.

But Williamson said regardless of the game’s traditions, it wasn’t a time to push for a change in the rules to prohibit runs from being awarded after a batsman is hit.

“The rule has been there for a long time,” Williamson said.

“I don’t think anything like that’s happened (before) where you now question it.

“There were so many other bits and pieces to that game that were so important.”

Stokes immediately raised his hands to apologise for the incident, with the England allrounder clearly having no intention to deflect the ball. “I wasn’t celebrating,” England captain Eoin Morgan said. “It is not something you celebrate or cheer.”

— with AAP

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Original URL: https://www.news.com.au/sport/cricket/cricket-world-screams-for-rule-changes-after-world-cup-joke/news-story/164de30fbd569ad6558d6bdcfbd0a44f