Muneeba Ali run-out triggers controversy following her dismissal in rather fortuitous circumstances in Colombo.
Muneeba Ali run-out in unusual circumstances against India triggers confusion and debate.
In the fourth over of Pakistan’s chase against India in their World Cup match in Colombo, there was a brief halt due to confusion over whether opening batsman Muneeba Ali was truly declared run-out. Pakistan questioned the decision from the edge of the boundary, while the dismissed batsman Muneeba stayed on the edge of the field of play.
The Run-out incident
The uncertainty resulted from an extraordinary series of circumstances. First, as India called for an LBW off Kranti Goud’s bowling, Muneeba had been batting out of her crease (probably to counter swing) rather than trying to score a run.
Before Deepti Sharma’s throw from the slip cordon, Muneeba had already grounded her bat behind the crease as soon as the appeal was raised. She had, however, momentarily lifted her bat off the ground once again without grounding any other part of her body behind the line, and it was during this brief period that Deepti’s throw struck the stumps and knocked the bails loose.
A hitter who is “running or diving towards her ground” is the only one who is exempt from being given out under ICC Playing Condition 30.1.2, which permits a batter to lose contact with the ground beyond the crease. There was no motion that would have required Muneeba’s bat to leave the crease; she was just moving back into it.
The playing condition states: “However, a batter shall not be considered to be out of her ground if, in running or diving towards her ground and beyond, and having grounded some part of her person or bat beyond the popping crease, there is subsequent loss of contact between the ground and any part of her person or bat, or between the bat and person.”
Reasons for Confusion
Conflicting third-umpire rulings that were displayed on the large screen contributed to some of the confusion. Even the Indian players had gone back to their positions when Muneeba was first shown as “not out” on the screen. The India players celebrated when that ruling was quickly changed to “out,” but Muneeba seemed perplexed and eagerly asked the on-field umpires for clarification.
Third umpire Kerrin Klaaste might have initially declared Muneeba not out before viewing the video past Muneeba’s initial bat grounding. Klaaste probably changed her mind after watching the entire set of replays, which showed Muneeba raising her bat once more.
Muneeba started to leave the pitch, but she stopped when she noticed a lot of commotion close to the Pakistan dugout. The fourth umpire, Kim Cotton, was at her station between the two team dugouts, and she appeared to be receiving instructions from her teammates to stay on the pitch while they questioned the call once more. While next batter Sidra Amin stood on the boundary line without entering the playing area, Muneeba was observed having additional conversations with her teammates, particularly captain Fatima Sana.
After presumably receiving more information on the dismissal, Sana finally seemed to indicate to Muneeba that she might leave the pitch. Amin stepped onto the pitch and proceeded to strike. A delay that lasted several minutes longer than a typical run-out was prompted by the incident.
If India had re-examined the on-field umpire’s not-out call, Muneeba would have also been out lbw off that delivery. Pakistan was chasing 248 when she was dismissed, leaving them 6 for 1 in four overs.