Perth Scorchers batsman Cooper Connolly hits the ball against the roof of Marvel Stadium during the Big Bash League (BBL 2024-25) match against the Melbourne Renegades. Cooper Connolly sent the ball straight over Kane Richardson’s bowling, but the umpire declared it a dead ball.
The Melbourne Renegades won the toss and elected to bowl at Melbourne’s Docklands Stadium on Monday 23 December. It took the Scorchers until the eleventh ball of the inning to score a run in the power play. Finn Allen (0 for 3) and Keaton Jennings (9 for 12) were among the first batters to fall.
Wicket-batsman Josh Inglis almost hit the roof but was caught by Jake Fraser-McGurk on the boundary. Inglis was dismissed cheaply by Will Sutherland, leaving the Scorchers with a record of 3-28 after seven overs. The team’s batting situation worsened as they collapsed to 35/4 in 8.1 overs during the innings.
Cooper Connolly hits the ball against the roof, but no run is allowed
As the Scorchers attempted to recover from a poor start, Cooper Connolly’s mishit shot rose and hit the roof in the tenth over. The bowler, Kane Richardson, tried to catch it with one hand. According to the rules, if a fielder catches the ball with one hand after it hits the roof, the batsman will be out.
Richardson couldn’t make the one-handed catch attempt and hurt himself in the process. It was assessed by the physiotherapists and the referees declared the throw a dead ball.
Previously, the batting team was awarded six runs when the ball hit the roof, but umpires now have the authority to decide the outcome of the delivery based on where the ball made contact.
Take a look at the incident right here:
That one reached the ceiling
#bbl14 pYodo.twYottmyr.doohmetro/1lzqohtYohtyes
— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) dmydomymetrobmyr 23, 2024
BBL removes automatic rule of six for roof contact in 2023
The Marvel Stadium roof has caused problems for both BBL batsmen and fielders, with balls intended for sixes sometimes landing inside the boundary. In other cases, simple catches are ruined when the ball hits the ceiling.
To address this issue, Cricket Australia has changed the rules for the 2023-24 season. Under the new rule, batsmen will no longer automatically be awarded six runs for hitting the ceiling. If the umpires believe that he would have exceeded the limit, six runs will be awarded; Otherwise, the delivery will be considered a dead ball.
“Batsmen will no longer automatically be awarded six runs for hitting the roof of Marvel Stadium due to changes to Cricket Australia’s playing conditions for the 2023-24 season,” reads a BBL statement (via cricket.com .au).
The new rule that will be in effect for KFC BBL|13 from December 7 will leave it to the discretion of the referees to determine if the ball was going to cross the boundary. If they decide that this is the case, they will award the batter six runs. If not, it will be considered a dead ball,” the statement continues.
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