India’s T20 World Cup 2024 win last year ended a wait of 13 years for the Men in Blue since they last won a WC when MS Dhoni-led the side back in the 2011 ODI WC. The win was even more special, since at one point India was almost on the verge of losing the contest.
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Match Called off
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31/0
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16/2
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46/0
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162/7
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David Miller was looking in good touch and was taking the game away from India but Suryakumar Yadav’s heroics brought India back into the contest. With 16 runs needed off the last over, SKY caught Miller near the boundary ropes in a dramatic fashion. He grabbed a high shot from David Miller near long-off, threw the ball up before stepping over the boundary, and came back inside to complete the catch.
However, the catch came under question since Surya’s feet was millimetres away and there were doubts regarding if it had touched it. Nevertheless, it was deemed clean by the third umpire and declared out. Later footage also revealed that the boundary rope was pushed a little behind the white line marking the boundary.
However, under the proposed MCC Law 19.5.2, set to be integrated into ICC playing conditions in June 2025 and MCC laws in October 2026, this catch is legal.
19.5.2 states, “A fielder who is not in contact with the ground is considered to be grounded beyond the boundary if, prior to their first contact with the ball, their final contact with the ground was not entirely within the boundary. This applies to any fielder who makes contact with the ball after it has been delivered by the bowler, whether or not the ball has previously been touched by another fielder.”
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While SKY cleared all the legalities of the catch, Rayudu revealed how India got lucky with the win. The boundary rope which was spotted behind the line was apparently moved by the broadcasters during the break and it was not put back to its original position. If the rope hadn’t been moved behind, SKY could have touched it during the catch costing India a big chance.
Speaking to Shubhankar Mishra in a video on his Youtube channel, Ambati Rayudu said, “During the break, chairs are put near the boundary rope to put screens to show broadcasters what’s going on. During that the boundary rope was removed and they never put it back in place.”
India eventually went on to win the contest by 7 runs and end a long jinx.