Sehwag's century should stand.

With scores level, when Sehwag was about to face the controversial ball, he had already played 98 balls and was batting on 99. Next is the no-ball which he hits for a 6. On the records, it is shown that India has won the match, and Sehwag is left unbeaten on 99, having faced 100 balls. According to the pundits, since the “no-ball came first” India had won the match, so the 6 is not counted in the record book.

With so much of hue and cry over the matter, everyone is blaming the bowler, the captain, team and the SL board. All experts have had their say in print and visual media with all sorts of view expressed – but none actually examining the law itself. So, let us look at what the laws of cricket actually say, which can be applicable and relevant to this episode? According to the law :

a)      The ball does not become “dead” once the no-ball has been bowled.

b)      A penalty of one run shall be awarded instantly on the call of no-ball. Unless the call is revoked, this penalty shall stand even if a batsman is dismissed. It shall be in addition to any other runs scored, any boundary allowance and any other penalties awarded.

The operative part of the law is, “the penalty of one run shall be in addition to any other runs scored”.

The argument is this. First, the match is not over with the no-ball declaration, since the ball is not “dead” yet. The match gets over only after the ball is “dead”.

Secondly, the penalty is in addition to other runs scored – so, the 6 should be the winning run, and penalty of 1 run is added for the no-ball.

Hence, Sehwag’s century should recorded as such in the scorebooks.

Spirit of the Game

16th August 2010, India are playing Sri Lanka in a tri-series game at Dambulla. Sehwag is on 99, India need a run to win. Suraj Randiv is the bowler. Randiv oversteps by a long way, by a foot in fact. His back-foot is close to overstepping as well whereas the front-foot is way over the front line. As soon as the ball is delivered, Sehwag comes down the track and launches him into the stands. Everyone for a second are delighted thinking that Sehwag has got to his hundred with that six, but since the no-ball came first, the game finished at that point, meaning Sehwag was stranded on 99

What does the law say?: The no-ball law paints a completely different picture. According to Law 24 in the MCC's laws of cricket, it is clearly stated that the no-ball does not become a dead ball once it has been delivered. Also it states that the runs made by the batsmen will stand in addition to the one penalty run given for the no-ball. If that is the case then Sehwag should have been not-out on 105 and not left stranded on 99 as was the case. Here are those laws which give a fair idea of what happens when a no-ball is bowled. 

Law 24 no-ball - 11. Ball not dead 

The ball does not become dead on the call of No ball. 

12. Penalty for a No ball 

A penalty of one run shall be awarded instantly on the call of No ball. Unless the call is revoked, this penalty shall stand even if a batsman is dismissed. It shall be in addition to any other runs scored, any boundary allowance and any other penalties awarded. 

13. Runs resulting from a No ball - how scored 

The one run penalty for a No ball shall be scored as a No ball extra. If other penalty runs have been awarded to either side, these shall be scored as in Law 42.17 (Penalty runs). Any runs completed by the batsmen or a boundary allowance shall be credited to the striker if the ball has been struck by the bat; otherwise they also shall be scored as No ball extras. 

Also according to Law 21.6(c) which says 'If a boundary is scored before the batsmen have completed sufficient runs to win the match, then the whole of the boundary allowance shall be credited.' But this law is applicable only if the delivery bowled is a legal one and does not have any mention of what happens if it is a no-ball. 

This above law needs to be looked into and needs a tweaking in order to prevent more such incidents in the future. 


credit : Srivathsa