by John Wisden
Then, in Kolkata, Alastair Cook was run out in bizarre circumstances, taking evasive action at the non-striker’s end as Virat Kohli threw the ball from midwicket. Cook had backed up a couple of metres down the pitch, but turned to regain his ground after seeing no run was possible. He was leaning towards his crease in order to tap his bat down but, just inches before doing so, took evasive action as the ball passed him. It hit the stumps – and Cook was out for 190.
The Laws do contain a section designed to protect a batsman from being out if he is attempting to avoid injury. The relevant part of Law 38.2 says a batsman is not run out if “he has been within his ground and has subsequently left it to avoid injury, when the wicket is put down”. The key is the first six words: Cook had not returned to his crease before taking evasive action, and the umpires could not therefore enact Law 38.2(a). Had he tapped his bat down, then taken evasive action, he would have been protected. His reaction suggested he was aware of his blunder, and he later confirmed it was a “brain fade”.
The running out of the non-striker by the bowler remains one of the most emotive dismissals, and tempers frayed when Surrey’s Murali Kartik removed Somerset’s Alex Barrow that way in a Championship match. The Laws allow the bowler to run out the non-striker before he enters his delivery stride, which starts when the back foot is planted. The ICC and the ECB have altered this for their regulations, with the aim of keeping the non-striker in his ground for longer. The ECB’s wording is: “The bowler is permitted, before releasing the ball and provided he has not completed his usual delivery swing, to attempt to run out the non-striker.”
Neither the Laws nor the regulations state that a warning should be given, although convention suggests it is preferable. But Kartik had already warned Barrow: while the affair was unsavoury to many, Kartik had done nothing wrong. The bowler is normally painted as the villain in such a scenario, but it is the batsman who is gaining an unfair advantage, whether wilfully or inadvertently.
With TV umpires often scrutinising no-balls at the fall of a wicket, many have questioned whether the no-ball Law is too strict, and the bowler should get the benefit of the doubt on in marginal cases. Law 24.5 explains that the bowler’s front foot must land with some part of the foot, whether grounded or raised, behind the popping crease. Law 9.3 additionally defines the popping crease as the back edge of the crease marking. If the bowler’s heel is on the line, and nothing behind it, then the delivery is a no-ball. It also makes no difference how thick the markings are: it is the back edge of the line that matters.
There has to be a precise point at which the delivery goes from being fair to unfair. You could redefine the Law, but you would only be shifting the problem, not solving it: the umpire would have to check whether the line was touched, or completely overstepped. It would be the same problem, but moved to a different area. The problem here is not with the Law, but with bowlers overstepping. MCC accept that a centimetre here or there won’t necessarily give the bowler an unfair advantage. But unless there is a clear point at which fair becomes unfair, the confusion will only increase. Shades of grey may have been all the rage in 2012 but, in the case of the no-ball, black and white is essential.
Fraser Stewart is Laws manager at MCC.
The current code of the Laws appears on the MCC website (www.lords.org).
CHRONICLE OF 2012
SKY NEWS
January 1
Australian Test players were irritated when their prime minister, Julia Gillard, told an official reception for the Indian team that her country’s cricket fans were “looking forward to what may be a very special hundred made in Australia” – meaning Sachin Tendulkar’s 100th international century. Michael Clarke said his team hoped the century would come somewhere else. His team-mate Mike Hussey called the prime minister’s comment “strange”.
NDTV.COM
January 6
The newly elected chief of Sri Lanka Cricket, Upali Dharmadasa, said he had held a puja to drive out demons he held responsible for the board’s cash crisis and the team’s poor results. “I am a businessman and I know the effects of these evil spirits.”
DAILY TELEGRAPH
January 20
The German footballer Didi Hamann claimed to have lost £288,400 on a single cricket spread bet. In his autobiography, Hamann – best-remembered as a defensive midfielder with Liverpool – said he had “bought” an Australian innings against South Africa at 340 for £2,800 a run. Australia collapsed for 237, thus costing him 103 x £2,800. “The next day, when I looked at the mess that was me in the mirror, I said, ‘Didi, things have got to change.’”
SOUTH MANCHESTER REPORTER
January 26
Manchester City Council approved a plan to turn Longsight Cricket Club, where the touring Australians were beaten in 1878, into a housing estate. Eighteen men of Longsight (including G. F. Grace and W. R. Gilbert) overcame the Australian XI by two wickets. A century later, the club was one of the strongest in the area, but the East Road ground had been closed since 2004 because they could no longer afford the upkeep. The bowling green will stay, alongside 65 houses and 18 flats.
SOUTH ASIAN TIMES
January 30
An umpire killed a 15-year-old spectator after he ran on to the field to dispute a decision, according to police in Kishoreganj, Bangladesh. The youth, named as Nazrul Islam, rushed on after a batsman was given not out, and accused the umpire of bias. An argument ensued, then the umpire took a bat and hit the boy, who showed no immediate signs of injury but died of internal bleeding next day. The umpire, who was not named, was in hiding.
THE AGE
February 12
The waiting list for the Melbourne Cricket Club has now surpassed the population of Hobart and stands at 217,000. It is estimated that it now takes 22–23 years to join the 61,500 full members and gain full privileges at major MCG occasions. About 3,000 vacancies occur each year, but the list is growing inexorably because there are 15,000 new applicants. However, the club have lost contact with many of those waiting because they have moved so often.
THE AGE
February 13
The Melbourne Premier match between Prahran and Richmond at Toorak Park was halted after just nine balls when a fielder became suspicious about the length of the pitch. It turned out to be at least two metres too long. This was the second such incident in Australian club cricket in the 2011-12 season, and both involved Test players. Ryan Harris was playing in the first match. This time it was Cameron White, who made 147 – on a re-marked pitch.
THE ISLAND
February 17
World Cup-winning captain Arjuna Ranatunga condemned the treatment of the trophy Sri Lanka won under his leadership in 1996. It was apparently damaged when on display at an exhibition, and two gold rivets went missing.
THE ISLAND
March 1
Thirty Colombo schoolboys were arrested after climbing the walls of a nearby girls’ school and demanding money to support their “Big Match”. The contests between rival schools are an important part of Sri Lankan cricket tradition and have long been accompanied by a student-rag atmosphere. However, police had specifically issued a warning through the media that girls’ schools were off limits. The boys were given a further warning and released without charge.
BBC
March 3
The Afghan National Army beat a British military team to win a two-day tournament in war-torn Helmand Province. The British also lost to a team of Afghan interpreters. Lt-Col Tim Law of the Royal Artillery said the Afghan side turned out to be “absolutely fantastic”. More than 1,500 supporters ran on to the pitch after the soldiers dismissed the British for 75, a 90-run win.
MUMBAI MIRROR
March 11
Cricket Australia flew a cup to mark Sachin Tendulkar’s 100th international hundred to every venue where he played in Australia in 2011-12, awaiting the moment for presentation, which never came.
ITV NEWS
March 23
/> Seven-year-old Charlie Allison from Colchester has become an internet sensation after the release on YouTube of a video of him batting in the nets, driving, pulling and reverse-sweeping with near-professional aplomb.
SPORT 360°
March 27
A painting depicting the highlights of Tendulkar’s career, by the British-based artist Sacha Jafri, has been sold for $750,000. The proceeds will go to the M. S. Dhoni Foundation to support poor children.
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA
April 2
The Mumbai Cricket Association intends to shower Tendulkar with a hundred gold coins for reaching 100 international centuries.
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
April 13
Former Indian captain Mohammad Azharuddin, now an MP, scored a century for the Indian Parliamentarians in Dharmasala to beat a rather less expert team of their British equivalents, the Lords and Commons, by 56 runs.
ESPNCRICINFO
April 24
Ratilal Parmar, 56, whose hobby is collecting banknotes that have special associations with Sachin Tendulkar, has acquired a new prize: a ten-rupee note numbered 240412, the date of Tendulkar’s 39th birthday. Parmar wants to present his hero with the notes connected with his milestones, especially 160312, the date of the 100th international hundred. He estimates he has spent a million rupees building his collection, sometimes by pleading with bank clerks for help.
ORMSKIRK ADVERTISER
April 26
An off-duty nurse, watching the Second XI match between Burscough and Rainsford in Lancashire, went to the rescue after Burscough’s Carl Lydiate left the field with chest pains. His team-mates assumed he had indigestion. “I could tell he was in trouble,” said Hayley McCullough, “because he was grey, sweating and saying his chest was feeling crushed.” She stayed with him until the ambulance arrived and Lydiate could receive treatment for a heart attack. John Williams, chairman of the Liverpool Competition, said: “This is a timely reminder to us all that coaches need to keep their first-aid certificates up to date.”
THE TIMES EDUCATIONAL SUPPLEMENT
April 27
Teachers have posted hundreds of complaints on an online forum about the idiocy of school inspectors from the British inspection body OFSTED. One PE teacher was allegedly told the lesson was “unsatisfactory as there were children doing nothing”. The judgment was overturned after it was pointed out that the pupils were fielding in a cricket match.
DAILY RECORD
April 27
Taxpayers have paid £3,000 over the past two seasons so a worker could be employed to throw back balls hit over the fence at Dunfermline Knights’ ground in Scotland. The club lost part of their McKane Park pitch due to flood prevention work, and the land was never reinstated. Fearful that fielders would injure themselves fetching the balls, Fife Council paid a member of the contractors’ staff £10 an hour to throw them back. Robert Oxley of Taxpayer Scotland said the affair was “barmy”.
BBC
May 7
The former England one-day captain Adam Hollioake, 40, achieved a draw on his debut as a mixed-martial-arts cage fighter in Queensland. Hollioake said he loved every minute of his brawl with Joel Miller in front of a 1,500 crowd on the Gold Coast, though his wife Sherryn did not. After a bad first round, Hollioake outfought his opponent in the final two. He has been through many travails following the death of his brother Ben, including bankruptcy. He said of Sherryn: “She is a beautiful person and she wants me to follow my dreams. But I just think at the moment she wishes my dreams were something else.”
SOUTHERN DAILY ECHO
May 8
David Taylor, Totton & Eling’s new captain/coach, scored 330 not out for the second team against bewildered Southern Premier League Division Three rivals Trojans, having turned out to get some batting practice when the first team’s match was called off. He hit 31 sixes and 19 fours off 160 balls in a total of 412 for three; Trojans mustered 103. Taylor, 37, had played for Worcestershire and Derbyshire.
DAILY TELEGRAPH
May 12
British prime minister David Cameron told how he had found his wife Samantha playing French cricket with a bat signed for him by Sachin Tendulkar in the grounds of Chequers and had to warn her: “No, darling, put it down; this is probably the most valuable possession I have.” He donated the bat for an auction at Lord’s raising £3,400 for the Rwanda Cricket Stadium Foundation.
SYDNEY MORNING HERALD
May 17
Australian captain Michael Clarke and his girlfriend Kyly Boldy married in secret in the Blue Mountains, announcing the news on Twitter, and taking friends and Cricket Australia by surprise. This disappointed magazine editors, who would have paid substantially for exclusive rights to the wedding pictures, but won praise from other quarters. “No deals, no media, no $$$s, just family and class,” tweeted one fan.
SUNDAY EXPRESS, MUMBAI
May 27
Arjun Tendulkar, the 12-year-old son of Sachin, hit his maiden century in the Mumbai Cricket Association’s Under-14 trials, scoring 124 for Khar Gymkhana against Goregaon Centre.
CRAVEN HERALD & PIONEER
May 28
Settle beat Stacksteads in Division Two of the Ribblesdale League by 452 runs in a 45-over match. Settle captain Nick Cokell scored 275 not out in a total of 467 for one. Stacksteads were then bowled out for 15, the lowest score in the league since 1931. “I’d never even scored a century before,” said Cokell. “To be fair, Stacksteads were gracious in defeat.”
ESPNCRICINFO
May 30
The theory that moisture makes a cricket ball swing is false, according to researchers at Sheffield Hallam and Auckland Universities. Tests using 3D laser scanners and an atmospheric chamber, reported in the journal Procedia Engineering, found no link between humidity levels and sideways movement. Altitude and the age of the ball did have an effect, however.
AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED PRESS
June 2
Actor Jason Alexander, best known for playing George in Seinfeld, posted a thousand-word apology after repeatedly calling cricket “a gay sport” on an American chat show. Some of his followers on Twitter had told him they were both gay and offended. There were no reports of complaints from cricketers.
THE HINDU
June 5
Sachin Tendulkar has been sworn in as a member of the Indian upper house, the Rajya Sabha. “It has been my dream to be remembered as someone who worked for all sports instead of just cricket statistics,” he said after taking the oath. However, he warned that, as an active player, he would continue to focus on his own game. Tendulkar was chosen as one of the 12 members of the parliament the president is allowed to nominate, although some critics claimed that a sportsman did not fulfil the criterion of “special knowledge or practical experience in… literature, science, art and social service” specified for selection under the constitution.
DVLAREGISTRATIONS.DIRECT.GOV.UK
June 9
Lot 1706, W15 DEN, was sold for £1,500, almost four times its reserve price of £400, at the regular British auction of personalised car registrations. The buyer would also have been liable for a further £524 in extra fees and tax.
BBC
June 11
Barrington were bowled out for six by Huish & Langport in Somerset League Division Two. They had safely reached three for nought, but eight batsmen fell for ducks in reply to their opponents’ 195 for seven. Huish & Langport captain Dominic Shillabeer took seven for two.
PETERBOROUGH TELEGRAPH
June 11
In Division Four of the Huntingdonshire League, Ramsey Third XI were bowled out for 12 by Yaxley Second XI. There were six ducks and a top score of three in reply to a Yaxley total of 105. “It’s not as though we had a bad team out either,” Ramsey player Richard Clarke said. “We had three experienced second-team cricketers in the side, but they were all given out lbw, which was crucial.”
SCARBOROUGH NEWS
June 13
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An Under-13 match between Scarborough and Bridlington was halted when a seagull stole one of the bails. The Scarborough players were coming out to field when the bird swooped on its prize, which was lying just behind the stumps. Umpire Barry Rudd tried to chase the bird but it flew off. Scarborough coach John Green said: “Our lads must have been traumatised by what they’d seen as we lost the game.”