In the ongoing 3rd Test between India and England, the hosts faced a setback as they were penalized five runs on the second day of play. England commenced their first innings at 5 for 0 after umpire Joel Wilson observed two instances of running on the ‘protected area’ of the pitch.
The penalty occurred during the Indian innings when R Ashwin, batting alongside debutant wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel, stepped on the protected area while attempting a single. Umpire Joel Wilson promptly signalled five penalty runs, a decision that favoured the fielding side, England.
This incident marked the second warning to an Indian batter for encroaching on the protected area. Ravindra Jadeja received a prior warning on the second day of the Test match.
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Seeking clarification, R Ashwin engaged in discussions with the umpire after the penalty runs were awarded. Running on the protected area is considered ‘unfair play’ as per the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) Laws, which dictate that batters must move away from the protected area immediately after playing a shot.
Yesterday Jadeja and Today Ashwin Ran in danger area .
Umpire given 5 penalty runsNow England will start from 5-0#INDvENG #INDvsENGTest #INDvsENG pic.twitter.com/G1fXrqXfzR
— Satya Prakash (@Satya_Prakash08) February 16, 2024
The MCC Laws state that if a batter causes deliberate or avoidable damage to the pitch, the umpire shall issue a warning to both batters, applicable for the entire innings. Subsequent offences result in disallowing runs, returning the batsmen to their original ends, or awarding penalty runs to the fielding side.
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Despite the setback, India continued their innings, losing Ravindra Jadeja and nightwatchman Kuldeep Yadav early on Day 2 to James Anderson and Mark Wood. However, R Ashwin, in partnership with Dhruv Jurel, steadied the ship, adding over 40 runs to the team’s total before the lunch break on Day 2.
The Indian team’s performance on Day 1 had seen a remarkable recovery from 33 for 3 to a commendable total of 326 for 5, courtesy of centuries from captain Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja, along with a brisk 62 from debutant Sarfaraz Khan.
