The bowler overstepping by a few inches is penalized, but a batsman backing up a few yards isn’t: Venkatesh Prasad

Mankading has often initiated a heated debate in the cricket fraternity with the cricket world divided into two halves on whether the act is against the spirit of the game or not. In IPL 2019, Ravichandran Ashwin had sparked controversy after he dismissed Rajasthan Royals batsman Jos Buttler through mankading.

The word mankading is again trending as the picture of Dwayne Bravo backing up a few yards while bowler Mustafizur Rahman was punished for bowling a no-ball is going viral on social media. On Monday, Chennai Super Kings were up against Rajasthan Royals at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai in a league game of IPL 2021.

On the second ball of the last over of the CSK’s batting innings, the left-arm pacer Mustafizur Rahman was punished for overstepping the line as the ball was declared as a no-ball with the batsman given a free hit. However, what attracted the attention of many viewers was the position of Dwayne Bravo as he was already ahead of the crease if before Rahman bowled the delivery.

Seeing the incident many cricket fans are of the opinion that Mankading shouldn’t be considered as against the spirit of cricket as it is unfair to the bowlers if the batsman backs up a few yards. Former Indian cricketer Venkatesh Prasad also took to his official Twitter handle to discuss his opinion on the matter saying that calling mankading against the spirit of the game is a joke.

Prasad minced no words as he reckoned that the bowler should have every right to run out the batsman if he is backing up. “The bowler overstepping by a few inches is penalized, but a batsman backing up a few yards isn’t. The bowler has every right to run out a batsman backing up so far. PERIOD. Calling it against the spirit of the game is a joke,” Venkatesh Prasad said in a tweet while tagging the International Cricket Council (ICC).

The bowler overstepping by a few inches is penalised, but a batsman backing up a few yards isn’t.
The bowler has every right to run out a batsman backing up so far. PERIOD.

Calling it against the spirit of the game is a joke @ICC .#CSKvRR pic.twitter.com/vIHqbe6fWU

— Venkatesh Prasad (@venkateshprasad) April 20, 2021

Simon Doull extends his support to the act of Mankading

Former New Zealand bowler Simon Doull, who was on air at the time of the incident, also supported the sentiments of Venkatesh as he asserted that the incident between Dwayne Bravo and Mustafizur Rahman clearly shows why mankading isn’t against the spirit of the game.

“That picture we just showed where Bravo was so far out of his crease … is a great example of why he should be run out. The bowler is minimally over, yet he gets punished (with a no-ball),” Doull said on Star Sports