In the match against Melbourne Stars, Hobart Hurricanes were charged with a 5-run penalty after their batsman Tim David deliberately ran a short run, trying to retain strike.

The incident happened in the penultimate ball of the final over, when David hit a yorker to long-on and attempted to run a two. However, midway, realising that he may not be able to complete the second run, David deliberately did not touch his bat at the non-striker’s end. The moment David returned back, he was atleast two metres away from the popping crease then.

Tim David’s act first caught the attention of the umpire, who handed Hobart Hurricanes a 5-run penalty under Law 18.5.1. On top of that, the completed run as well was not added to Hobart’s tally. After the incident, David scored five more runs, one off a no-ball, two off the last delivery and two more on the free hit.

Stars will start their innings with 5 free runs courtesy of this… #BBL11 pic.twitter.com/lz9tRxNLLB

— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) December 24, 2021

The penalty did not leave an impact on the match as Hobart Hurricanes earned a convincing win over Melbourne Stars, who lost the game by 24 runs.

Cricketing fraternity divided on the controversy

Commentating on Fox Sports, Adam Gilchrist, lashed out at David and said his deliberate act was against the spirit of the game. “I would say it’s not really in the spirit of the game, whatever that means,” Gilchrist said.

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Peter Handscomd defended his teammate and stated that Tim was just looking to retain strike. “Tim was just trying to get back to his end. He’s a big boy and can hit sixes so it was his job to get back on strike,” Handscomb was quoted as saying to Fox Sports.