The International Cricket Council (ICC) has decided to scrap the controversial ‘soft signal’ rule given by on-field umpires, often criticized by experts as it creates confusion for the TV umpire when the decision goes to the third umpire. used to do. The ‘soft signal’ has been used to determine the validity of a catch taken a few inches above the ground because such a catch cannot be accurately judged by the naked eye. Till now the on-field umpires used to signal ‘out’ or ‘not out’ on the basis of their estimation which is called ‘soft signal’.
In most cases, the TV footage made it difficult to estimate the catch correctly and in such cases the third umpire gave his decision on the basis of ‘soft signal’. The ICC announced the change in playing conditions after the recommendations of the Men’s Cricket Committee and the Women’s Cricket Committee, headed by Sourav Ganguly, were approved. The ICC said, “The biggest change is the abolition of the ‘soft signal’. Now on-field umpires will not need to give ‘soft signals’ when the decision is sent to the TV umpire. The on-field umpires will consult with the TV umpire before making any decisions.
Former Indian captain Ganguly said, “In the last two years there has been a discussion about ‘soft signals’ in the Cricket Committee meetings. The committee discussed at length and came to the conclusion that the ‘soft signal’ is unnecessary and at times creates confusion as the catch may not be predicted correctly in the replay. Wearing helmet is mandatory. When the batsman is facing fast bowlers, when the wicket-keeper is standing near the stumps and when the fielder is standing close to the batsman, wearing a helmet is mandatory in these situations.
Apart from this, a minor change has also been made in the rule of free hit. Now if the ball hits the stumps on a free hit and the batsman scores a run on it then it will be added to the score. This means that a batsman can score runs even if he is bowled on a free hit. All these rules will come into effect from June 1, 2023, from the only Test match to be held at Lord’s between England and Ireland. The final of the World Test Championship between India and Australia, starting on June 7, will be played under the new rules.
