Out or Not Out? Indian Players Unhappy After Third Umpire Overturns Phoebe Litchfield's LBW Decision
Harmanpreet Kaur and the other Indian players were left fuming over a DRS call in their last Group A match of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, which was played against Australia on Sunday (October 13) in Sharjah. In the 14th over of Australia’s innings, Phoebe Litchfield attempted to play a reverse sweep shot against Deepti Sharma. The Australian batter, however, failed to connect, and the ball directly hit her pads.
With the Indian players appealing for an LBW, the on-field umpire didn’t hesitate much before raising her finger. Australia opted for the DRS, and the third umpire overturned the initial decision as the ball pitched outside the leg stump.
The Indian players were visibly displeased. According to them, Litchfield should be considered a right-handed batter in this case, as she tried to reverse sweep. The official rules, however, don’t support this claim.
Even if a batter changes the stance in an attempt to play an unorthodox shot, the basic definition of on and off sides will remain the same. So, when the ball is pitching leg side, it can never be adjudged an LBW. As per the MCC law, the on and off sides of a batter will be determined by his or her batting position when the “ball into play for that delivery.”
MCC : 36.3 Off side of wicket law saved Phoebe LitchfieldThe off side of the striker’s wicket shall be determined by the striker’s batting position at the moment the ball comes into play for that delivery.#INDvAUS #T20WorldCup @MCCOfficial pic.twitter.com/rLFYN0TqUd
— Pushkar Pushp (@ppushp7) October 13, 2024
India ended up losing the nail-biting clash by nine runs. After the match was over, veteran pacer Shikha Pandey criticised the rules via a social media post where she labelled cricket as a “batter’s game.”
Batter’s game ♀️— Shikha Pandey (@shikhashauny) October 13, 2024
Harmanpreet’s India currently find themselves in a tricky situation, having lost the last Group A game to Australia. Coming to chase a 152-run target, the Indian batting unit faced an early collapse. Harmanpreet was the standout batter and scored an unbeaten 54 off 47 balls. Deepti Sharma also put up a gritty show and added 29 runs to the scoresheet. Their efforts, however, went in vain as India folded their innings at 142 runs, losing nine wickets along the way.
India can reach the semi-finals of the Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 if Pakistan beat New Zealand in their last league match on Monday (October 14). India share the same points (four) with New Zealand and hold the second spot in Group A.
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