New wide ball, DRS and concussion rules: ICC introduces stricter playing conditions

Time of India

10 hours ago

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Stop clock
Number of balls per ODI innings
Boundary catches
Deliberate short run
DRS wicket zone
Concussion protocols
Replacement players (domestic first-class cricket)
Wide Ball Trial (ODI and T20I cricket)
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The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Friday announced several new rules and playing conditions for international and domestic matches, effective immediately.The new playing conditions have been applied to the new World Test Championship cycle that started with Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh on June 17. The first limit over fixture will feature the two teams in an ODI match on July 2.New rules include a move back to one ball per innings in the last 16 overs in a One Day International, a new ruling pertaining to boundary catches and the use of stop clocks introduced in Test matches.There are changes in concussion protocols as well as the DRS wicket zone and deliberate short runs, as per ICC.The changes were recommended by the ICC Men's Cricket Committee, headed by Sourav Ganguly.Here are the changes in playing conditions:After the introduction of the stop clock to track time between overs in the white-ball formats, it will now be implemented for Test cricket. The bowling team has to be ready to bowl the first ball of their next over within 60 seconds of the previous over being completed.There will be two warnings for failing to do so. A third failure will result in a five-run penalty imposed against the fielding team on each occasion.Two warning sanctions will be reset to zero after 80 overs have passed, in line with a new ball becoming available, and again after any future blocks of 80 overs in that innings.Two new balls will be used for the first 34 overs of an ODI innings, after which the fielding team will choose one of the balls for the remaining 16 overs. This has been aimed at reviving reverse swing in the format.Changes to the playing conditions now require a fielder who makes airborne contact with the ball beyond the boundary to land and remain inside the boundary.A fielder can make contact with the ball only once more while airborne beyond the boundary. Another attempt will result in a six.Having done so, they must land and remain wholly within the boundary. This applies even if another player completes the fielding.This change will be implemented in international cricket before it is included in the MCC Laws of Cricket next year.There is currently a five-run penalty for a deliberate short run. Now, in addition to this, the fielding team will also choose which of the two batters takes strike for the next delivery.The wicket zone will now be the actual outline of the stumps and bails.There are two new changes to the concussion protocols.The first being: Teams will now be required to nominate their designated concussion replacements for the match. This curbs the advantage previously held by teams, who have typically been able to choose from a larger pool of potential replacements.Second: A player diagnosed with a concussion during a match must observe a minimum stand-down period of a minimum of seven days before returning to play, meaning the player must not take the field for the next seven days.This change has been recommended by the ICC Medical Advisory Committee to support players' safety and well-being.More playing conditions to be trialled by Full MembersFrom October 2025 and for an initial six-month period, there are additional changes.A player who suffers a serious injury and is ruled out for the rest of the match may be replaced for the remainder of the match by a fully participating like-for-like player.In an effort to become more bowler-friendly, a bowler who sees the batter moving in the crease prior or during a delivery, a new wide ball rule will be trialled.As part of the changes, the position of the batter's legs at the point of delivery will now be used as the reference point for a wide, even if the batter subsequently moves across to the off side.The trial will see a ball that passes the popping crease between the leg stump and the protected area marker not being called a Wide. To help with this, the protected area marker line will be extended to the popping crease and act as a guide for the umpires.Any leg side delivery that passes behind the batter's legs and outside of the line at the time the ball reaches the popping crease may still be called a Wide.Previously, a wide had been called for a delivery that would not have been called wide if the batter had retained their normal batting position.