USA were docked five runs at a crucial juncture in their Group A encounter against India at the T20 World Cup which they ultimately lost by seven wickets. (Scorecard | As It Happened)
Chasing 111 on a spicy New York surface, India needed 35 runs from the last five overs when they were awarded five extra runs. The on-field umpire Paul Reiffel had a chat with the stand In US skipper Aaron Jones after which he went ahead with the penalty.
The penalty changed the equation to 30 runs from 30 balls and India eventually crossed the line with 10 balls still remaining.
Why was the five-run Penalty awarded?
The penalty was awarded because the US bowlers were not ready to begin the next over within 60 seconds of finishing the last one for the third time in the match.
As per the new rule introduced earlier this year, if a team is not ready to bowl the first ball of an over within 60 seconds of the completion of the previous one, they will be handed two warnings and any additional breach will result in a five-run penalty per incident.
As per the playing condition of this World Cup: "On the first such occasion in an innings, the bowler’s end umpire shall issue a warning to the captain of the fielding side and inform the batters and the other umpire of what has occurred. On the second occasion in an innings, the above sequence is repeated, but with the reminder that this is a final warning. On the third and any subsequent occasion in an innings, the bowler’s end umpire shall award 5 Penalty runs to the batting side, informing the captain of the fielding side, the batters and the other umpire."
How did the Penalty affect the match?
The five-run penalty came as a big sigh of relief for the Indian team. It was a tough pitch to bat on in New York and at the time of the penalty being awarded, India still needed 35 runs from 30 balls.
We have seen how teams have lost from winning positions in the India vs Pakistan match and the South Africa vs Bangladesh match in the same stadium.
However, after the penalty, the equation was reduced to run-a-ball and the duo of Suryakumar Yadav and Shivam Dube carefully guided India to victory by seven wickets and 10 balls in hand.
Earlier, Arshdeep Singh bowled the best ever spell by an Indian in the T20 World Cup. The left-arm pacer picked four wickets giving away just nine runs in his four overs. Hardik Pandya also took two wickets for 14 runs and India restricted the co-hosts to 110/7.
Despite Virat Kohli's first ball Duck and skipper Rohit Sharma also getting out early, India managed to chase the highest target at the New York venue and booked their ticket to the Super 8 stage.
