- By Namrata Vijay
- Sun, 28 Sep 2025 09:56 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
IND vs PAK Asia Cup 2025 Final: India captain Suryakumar made an appeal against Pakistan skipper Salman Agha obstructing the field in the summit clash on Sunday. Captain Suryakumar Yadav appealed as Salman tried to block the ball thrown towards the striker's end.
The incident had happened in the 16th over of the first innings, which was bowled by Axar Patel.
Salman tried to play the full ball in Axar's over and tried to take the second run, and was accused of having changed the direction while taking a run as he tried to block the ball, which was aimed at the stumps.
Suryakumar then appealed to the on-field umpire for obstruction of the field.
In the replay, it was shown that the Pakistan captain didn't try to change the direction.
The matter was referred upstairs to the third umpire. Who did a couple of checks and then gave the verdict that it was not an intentional obstruction and declared the batter safe.
Notably, Sanjay Manjrekar was commentating alongside Akram at the stage. He also agreed mildly to his colleague that it was a tad unnecessary as Salman Agha was not intentionally on the path of the throw.
MCC’s law regarding obstructing the field
MCC’s law 37 concerns the dismissal. It states that a batter is out obstructing the field, while the ball is in play, they willfully (deliberately) obstruct or distract the fielding by word or action. This includes the striker willfully hitting the ball with hand not holding the bat while receiving the delivery.
The batter is not out if the obstruction is accidental, to avoid injury or in the striker’s case, a lawful second strike purely to guard the wicket.
The incident in question completely fell under the MCC Laws and hence, the decision by the third umpire was justified and there should be no doubts or discussions around it.