As India settled for a draw against Sri Lanka in the second Test, all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja‘s indisciplined bowling became the talk of the town. Stasticians note that Jadeja has bowled more than 85 no-balls since 2021. In the 2-Tests against the islanders, he was a repeat offender when it comes to overstepping the line. Sunil Gavaskar, a purist of the game, lambasted Jadeja’s conduct on the field, suggesting for the player and even India’s bowling coach to be handed a hefty fine.
It wasn’t just Jadeja who overstepped repeatedly. Debutant spinner Saransh Jain also delivered multiple no-balls against the Lankans in the second Test. India’s spin bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule joked that maybe Test cricket needs to have free-hits too, but the comment left Gavaskar fuming.
“The no-balls being bowled by the Indian bowlers came in for a fair bit of comment. This has to be looked at urgently because it can change the colour of the game. There are very few aspects of the game that are totally in the players’ control, and a batter taking guard and a bowler not bowling a no-ball are two such aspects. Players, when they come for interviews, talk about doing things within their control. Today, with a tape measure available to mark the run-up, there should be no excuses for overstepping the bowling crease,” Gavaskar wrote in his column for Mid-Day.
“The India team spinning coach jokingly said that giving a free hit after a no-ball might help in curbing the offence. Please, let’s not make scoring runs in Test cricket easier for batters with this penalty. As it is, with the restriction on bouncers to two in an over and the boundaries being brought in, run-making has become a little simpler,” he added.
Sharing another idea to curb no-balls, Gavaskar said that the management needs to double the fine if an offence is repeated, and maybe even penalise the bowling coach if such instances continue.
“Instead, how about a fine which gets doubled for every further transgression, plus half the amount of the fine for the bowling coach, too. The fines collected can be used for the final team dinner before the boys disperse,” wrote Gavaskar.
“There could be other fines too, for example, not backing up for a throw or something else not done on the field, which the whole team can vote on whether to impose or not. This can also be a fun activity and bond the team even more,” he added.
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