Australia’s Steve Smith pulled off a stunning catch against Pakistan, dismissing Fawad Alam. The catch was sensational and controversial at a same time, as the Aussie all-rounder changed his position at leg-slip to dismiss the southpaw.
The incident happened in the 18th over, when Alam tried to sweep spinner Xavier Doherty. Smith, alert at first slip, quickly ran across to the leg-slip and took the catch as Alam miss-timed the ball, which took the top edge and popped up into the air.
Alam stood his ground amidst confusion, seeking clarification but was eventually given out by the umpires. The southpaw left the field in disbelief and understandably hit the boundary rope with the bat while leaving.
There is a debate whether Smith was right to change position but according to latest regulation of the International Cricket Council (ICC) the catch was completely legal. Alam, however, had deemed not out if Smith would have taken the catch before this series.
According to new Law 41.7 that came into effect from October 1, 2014 regarding movement of fielders state that: “Any significant movement by any fielder after the ball comes into play, and before the ball reaches the striker, is unfair.”
“In the event of such unfair movement, either umpire shall call and signal Dead ball. Note also the provisions of Law 42.4 (Deliberate attempt to distract striker).”
And, Law 41.8(a), states: For close fielders anything other than minor adjustments to stance or position in relation to the striker is significant.
These latest tweaks in the rules clearly states that Smith did nothing wrong in changing his fielding position and he was behind the batsman, so no distraction was causes. Australian skipper George Bailey also said the same thing after the match.
“We didn’t talk about that before the game but I am aware the rule has changed and it should. As a batsman, you are allowed to switch-hit or do whatever you like,” Bailey said. “All he’s done is anticipate where the ball is going to go.”
“As a cricket lover, you’re just moving well in the field and that’s no different to if you’re fielding at point you see that someone’s about to drop the ball and you’re moving in quicker,” he added. “So I think I’d be really sad if that went out of the game because that’s a spectacle.”
