Delhi Capitals coach Ricky Ponting has reiterated that he has told his eccentric Ravichandran Ashwin that he does not want him to fire an opposition hitter with a “Mankading.” The debate over the Mankad law has been over a year since Ashwin used the rule to fire Jos Buttler from the Rajasthan Royals in an IPL match last year. Ashwin was leading Kings XI Punjab at the time, and the moment led to widespread discussion as to whether Mankad’s rule is within the spirit of the game or not.
In a recent talk on InsideSport’s “Amstrad Face 2 Face Cricket Series” Ricky Ponting was asked if he would want Ashwin to be a Mankad hitter in the final game finale of the tournament with one wicket remaining. (Total IPL Coverage 2020)
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In his response, Ponting cheekily said, “I’m not going to hit Ashwin in the last over of the game.”
The former Australia captain continued: “We have talked about it and I have told him my expectation that I would not want him in Mankad.”
He further explained that he does not pass the law and believes the umpire should instead focus on making sure that the batter on the non-forward side does not cheat when leaving the area.
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“Although Mankad is a very simple law of the game in the game. It is a law that I am not happy with and I sit on the MCC Rules and Regulations committee. What we have to do is prevent hitters from cheating, which they often do in game death overs.
“Umpires also have to be a bit cautious and they need to get a signal in the third umpire’s ear so the batter knows he’s not cheating,” Ponting said.
Delhi Capitals will play their first IPL 2020 match against Kings XI Punjab in Dubai on Sunday.
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