It will be safe to say that Diwali came a day early for cricket fans across the globe as India and Pakistan lit up the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Australia producing a match for the ages which went down the wire.

As India huffed and puffed in their chase of 159 set by Pakistan, the last three overs saw Virat Kohli prove to the world why he is regarded as one-of-the-best chasers ever and took India home. There was a fair share of drama, as expected in such a close encounter, topped by a free-hit delivery which confused many viewers and Pakistan captain, Babar Azam himself.

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What happened?

With three balls remaining and India still needing 13 runs to win, Mohammad Nawaz, the Pakistani left-arm spinner bowled a full toss which was called a no-ball and was dispatched for a six by Virat Kohli.

The equation now was six to win off three balls still (because the previous ball was a no-ball) and the next delivery would be a free hit.

Nawaz bowled and Kolhi swung having nothing to lose as he could not be dismissed on this delivery. He missed however and the ball ricocheted off the stumps towards the third-man fielder. Kolhi and Dinesh Kartik scampered three by the time the ball was fielded.

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The confusion

The Pakistan players as well as the commentators seemed confused with what had just happened. Babar Azam walked up to the umpires and seemed to enquire why the ball was not declared a dead ball after Kohli had been bowled. The question on quite a few people's minds was if the runs were valid. If a ball is declared 'dead', no activity after that till the resumption of play again is valid.

What does the rule say?

According to the rules of the game, a ball can be declared 'dead' after 'it is finally settled in the hands of the wicketkeeper or of the bowler", or when “a boundary is scored."

The rule (20.1.1 in the MCC law) also states that a ball can also be called a dead ball when “a batter is dismissed. The ball will be deemed to be dead from the instant of the incident causing the dismissal."

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Now, this delivery was declared a free hit and there are only four modes of dismissal possible in that case. They are, 'handled the ball', 'hit the ball twice', 'obstructing the field' and 'run out'. Thus, a batter can not be bowled off a free hit.

In other words, the ball continued to be in play after hitting Kolhi's stumps and that this why the three runs that the Indian batters ran as byes, stood valid as the ball was only 'dead' when the ball finally settled in the hands of the wicketkeeper.

So, what happened finally?

The byes were awarded to India bringing the equation down to two runs to win off the last two balls. You know what happened after next!

First Published:Oct 24, 2022 2:11 PM IST