Leicestershire County Cricket Club on September 24 has confirmed that they are going to appeal against the point deduction and the penalty they faced due to the ‘poor’ quality pitch during a match against Glamorgan. 27-point deduction and a £5,000 fine have been sanctioned against Leicestershire for breaching pitch regulations.
Despite doubts over the pitch, they managed to swiftly win the match by 42 runs over Glamorgan. The actions were taken after the match. Days after the verdict of a point deduction and the hefty penalty, the county cricket club, through an official press release,e confirmed that they are not yet ready to surrender.
Leicestershire vows to appeal to Cricket Discipline Panel
The Club’s chief executive Emma White, in the official press release, which is shared across their official social media platforms, stated that they are respectful of the ongoing Cricket Discipline Panel process, but the process is not beyond question. In the statement, it has also been claimed that the Panel itself believes that the club did not cause any harm in the pitch delivery.
“The club respects the Cricket Discipline Panel process, which is ongoing. However, we have serious concerns about the process that resulted in the Panel’s decision on the charge and the sanctioning procedure. I can confirm that the club will be appealing,” said Leicestershire chief executive Emma White.
“The Panel itself found that the club did not intend the pitch to play as it did and that this was not a case of cheating. Our grounds team has an outstanding record, and I am proud of the work they do… I would ask all supporters to do the same, and to treat everyone involved, including players and staff from other counties, and those involved with administering this process, with courtesy and respect, both at the ground and online,” she further mentioned in the statement.
https://x.com/leicsccc/status/2103031687173358008
What was the actual incident?
The incident is related to the shooting of a movie. It was reported earlier that the ground was used to shoot a biopic of the former Team India captain Sourav Ganguly. Because of the film shoot, the pitch was uncovered for a substantial amount of time, which raised concerns.
The independent Cricket Discipline Panel (CDP) upheld the Cricket Regulator’s charge against Leicestershire for breaching the ECB Pitch Regulations. It was alleged that the pitch was under direct sunlight for eight hours before the match. It turned out to be a low-scoring match, with Leicestershire as the winner.
The pitch was reportedly acting in an unusual way
In a written format, match referee Ian Ramage, with multiple examples, tried to prove that the pitch which was used for that particular match was unusual because of its looks, uneven bounce, and a green middle (16mm of grass) corridor, which was kept to help the seamers, and bare ends (just 3mm) to help spinners.
“Accordingly, and for these reasons, LCCC have failed to discharge the burden upon them under Regulation 7.6 that it “sought, acting reasonably, to prepare the best quality pitch that it could for the match that was being staged,” the tribunal stated.
Source: cricketaddictor.com
