The global governing body for the game of cricket, the International Cricket Council (ICC), on Thursday ruled out that the front foot no-balls in forthcoming India vs West Indies series shall only be decided by the Third Umpire and not the on-field umpires.
West Indies is all set to tour India for a 3-game T20I followed by 3 ODIs, beginning from 6th December in Hyderabad. The upcoming series shall serve as a platform for testing the technological inclusion and relevance to call front foot no-balls.
"Throughout the trial, the Third Umpire will be responsible for monitoring every ball bowled and identifying whether there has been any front foot infringement," the ICC said in a statement.
"If there has been an infringement on the front foot, the Third Umpire will communicate this to the On-Field Umpire who will subsequently call a no-ball. As a result, the On-Field Umpire will not call a front foot no-ball without the advice of the Third Umpire," it further added.
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"…and if a late no-ball call is communicated, then the On-Field Umpire will rescind a dismissal (if applicable) and call no-ball. The On-Field Umpire will remain responsible for other in-game decisions in the usual way," the ICC said.
"The outcomes of the trial will be used to gauge whether the system has a beneficial impact on the accuracy of no-ball decisions and whether it can be implemented while minimising disruption to the flow of the game."
Front foot no-balls have been a big miss during the 2019 Indian T20 League, receiving a lot of criticism from the fans and the teams. Thus, the decision to make third-umpires the arbitrator of the front foot no balls, taking away the responsibility from the on-field umpires was taken in the August this year.
