New Delhi: If ICC Cricket Committee has its way, the shine on cricket ball would go off from next international matches. The committee has recommended to ban the use of saliva to shine the ball due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The recommendation was made following a meeting convened by the Anil Kumble-headed committee. The COVID-19 related issues during the matches were discussed at the meeting.
The committee heard from the ICC Medical Advisory Committee Chairman Dr. Peter Harcourt regarding the risk of the transmission of the virus through saliva and made the recommendations. According to Kumble, the recommendations are interim measures to ensure safe cricket in these difficult times.
The committee also recommended that local match officials should be appointed on short-term basis. It stressed on use of advanced technology and proposed an additional DRS review per team per innings.
The recommendations of the Cricket Committee will now be presented to the ICC Chief Executives’ Committee in early June for approval.
