The use of saliva to polish the ball was on Tuesday banned permanently as the ICC announced a slew of changes to its Playing Conditions, which will come into effect on October 1.
The ICC introduced a fresh set of rules which were ratified by the ICC Cricket committee led by BCCI president Sourav Ganguly.
As per the new rules, ‘Mankad'(bowler running the non-striker out) is no longer under the ‘Unfair Play’ section and will be considered a legitimate run-out. The use of Saliva which is permanently banned was first prompted by the ICC in 2020 in the wake of COVID-19.
Take a look at the other rules:
Batter returning when caught: The new batter coming in will have to take strike when a batter is caught, regardless of whether the two batters crossed each other on the pitch during the dismissal. Earlier, if the batter had crossed the non-striker before the catch, the non-striker was allowed to take strike.
Incoming batter ready to face the ball: The incoming batter will be allowed only two minutes to settle down and take the strike in both ODIs and Tests. The 90 seconds rule in T20Is will remain intact.
Bowler throwing the ball at the striker’s end before the delivery: As per the new rule, a bowler will not be allowed to attempt to run out a batter on the striker’s end if he is advancing down the wicket before the bowler’s delivery stride. The bowler was earlier allowed to attempt a run-out but it will now be deemed a dead ball.
Striker’s right to play the ball: A batter will require to keep some part of their bat or their body inside the pitch while facing a delivery. It will be called a dead ball if a batter stands beyond the pitch. Any delivery which forces the batter to leave the pitch will also be called a no-ball