One Less Player Outside 30-Yard Circle as T20I Penalty

The International Cricket Council (ICC) announces new changes to the game of cricket from time to time to ensure they’re evolving along with time. And today, 7th Jan 2022, they went on to announce some new changes in international cricket rules, especially for T20 internationals. Among this is the biggest rule change which now includes a fielder penalty.

A total of five fresh changes have been included in ICC’s latest rule changes in international cricket, two of which were for T20Is in particular. The fielder penalty is the biggest change of all which says that if the fielding team can’t start the first ball of the final over by the scheduled or rescheduled time, they will be awarded a fielder penalty which involves one less fielder outside the 30-yard circle for that final over.

Fielder penalty among new ICC rules

Today, the ICC announced this rule of an in-game penalty for slow over-rates which has been an issue in recent times. And with batsmen going berserk in in T20 cricket towards the end, a less fielder outside the 30-yard circle will be a big disadvantage for the fielding side, so we’ll see a lot more teams being careful among wasted time while bowling in T20 internationals.

The in-match penalty will act as an additional sanction for teams guilty of ending with slower over-rates. A variant of this rule was introduced in The Hundred 2021 last year in England and it’s good to see the ICC bringing in rules that have been tried and tested in T20 and franchise leagues across the world.

Optional drinks breaks

Another rule that has been seen in T20 franchise leagues like the Indian Premier League (IPL) was that of an optional drinks break at the end of the 10-over mark of each innings. The break will last 2 minutes and 30 seconds each but will only be applicable if both the teams and associations involved in a bilateral series agree to this rule at the start of the series itself.

Other new ICC rules

Another rule was that of bigger stumps for bowlers in DRS appeals. As part of an April 2021 rule change, ICC ruled that the heights of the bails should also be considered for any LBW review, only if 50% of the ball ends up clipping the bails. Earlier, clipping the bails stayed at umpire’s call but now the decision can be reversed if half of the ball hits the stumps, allowing bowlers a better chance in LBW reviews!

There was also the change in the points system in the World Test Championship from a complete allotment of 120 points in a series to a percentage of points they win from the number of matches played. Lastly, there’s the continuation of the earlier interim COVID-19 regulations, which includes only home umpires officiating in games as well as the ban on the use of saliva on the cricket balls.