IND vs ENG 3rd Test Day 2: Why did England start at 5/0 without a ball being bowled?

India squared off against England in the third Test match In Rajkot. Day 2 began positively for India, but they suffered a setback as centurion Ravindra Jadeja fell to Joe Root's bowling. His replacement, Ravichandran Ashwin, partnered with debutant Dhruv Jurel until Ashwin's misstep. Umpire Joel Wilson cautioned Ashwin for running on the pitch, leading to a penalty of 5 runs. Consequently, England will enjoy a 5-run bonus as they start their batting innings.

During the ongoing match, Jadeja had earlier received a warning for running on the pitch on Thursday. However, Ashwin committed a similar offence on the second day, resulting in a penalty of five runs. This means England will begin their batting innings with a bonus of five runs, at 5/0. 

MCC’s Laws for Unfair Play

Law 41 of MCC’s rulebook relates to "unfair play" and states about the protected area on a pitch, defining it as "that area of the pitch contained within a rectangle bounded at each end by imaginary lines parallel to the popping creases and 5 ft/1.52 m in front of each, and on the sides by imaginary lines, one each side of the imaginary line joining the centres of the two middle stumps, each parallel to it and 1 ft/30.48 cm from it."

The MCC’s law 41.14, which states about "Batter damaging the pitch", elaborates: "It is unfair to cause deliberate or avoidable damage to the pitch. If the striker enters the protected area in playing or playing at the ball, he/she must move from it immediately thereafter. A batter will be deemed to be causing avoidable damage if either umpire considers that his/her presence on the pitch is without reasonable cause."

Law 41.14.2 provides that if a batter causes deliberate or avoidable damage to the pitch, then the bowler's end umpire shall then warn both batters, and such warning shall apply throughout the innings. Law 41.14.3 provides for a five-run penalty to be imposed on the guilty side in case the offence is repeated after the first and final warning. 

India were previously penalised for same offence in 2016

India faced a similar situation in 2016 during the third Test against New Zealand when Jadeja, again, received a second warning for running on the pitch. Umpire Bruce Oxenford imposed a five-run penalty after Jadeja's actions during his face-off with pacer Trent Boult. This incident mirrored the recent penalty incurred by India in the ongoing match against England, highlighting the importance of adhering to pitch rules to avoid costly penalties.