Adam Gilchrist was entitled to use a squash ball inside his glove when batting during the World Cup final, cricket's lawmaker said on Tuesday.
The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) said Gilchrist had not acted against the laws or spirit of the game.
"Gilchrist's use of a squash ball was designed to alter his grip on the bat whilst at the crease, something which he was perfectly entitled to do," the MCC said in a statement on Tuesday.
Gilchrist scored 149 runs as Australia defeated Sri Lanka by 53 runs in the rain-affected World Cup final on April 28 in Bridgetown, Barbados.
Sri Lanka Cricket secretary Kangadaran Mathivanan objected to Gilchrist's tactic, describing it as unethical and claiming it gave him an unfair advantage.
The MCC said the relevant rule only stated what external protective equipment was allowed. For batsmen, helmets, pads, gloves and forearm guards are all listed as permitted.
"None has any definition or prescription," the MCC said. "Since there is no restriction in law even on the external form of batting gloves, let alone the interior thereof, no law has been breached."
Gilchrist has used a squash ball inside his glove for years as a practice aid to keep his bottom hand from moving too far around the grip.
After he reached his century against Sri Lanka, he waved, via the television cameras, to batting coach Bob Meuleman in Perth, Australia, who had given him the idea.
"This should not be considered unfair," the MCC said.
"Similarly, it has never been considered unfair for batsmen to use two grips on the bat handle," it added.
In Australia, Meuleman said that he had laughed out loud when he heard the Sri Lankans had objected.
"Actually, it's just a little bid sad that some people think there's something sinister in it," he said on Tuesday. "There's not."
Gilchrist's former West Australian coach, Wayne Clark, said it was ludicrous to think it gave Gilchrist an unfair advantage.
"They're grasping at straws," Clark said.
SSC Napoli’s Italian Serie A title hopes suffered a late setback on Sunday when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home against Genoa, setting up a thrilling season finale with closest rivals Inter just one point behind. The hosts remain top with 78 points, holding a slim lead over Inter, who won 2-0 at Torino earlier on Sunday, with two rounds remaining. To make matters worse for Napoli, midfielder Stanislav Lobotka, struggling with an ankle injury, was forced off just minutes after the match began. Scott McTominay delivered a perfect pass into the box where Romelu Lukaku got
Harry Kane opened the scoring ahead of lifting his first career silverware as Bayern Munich beat Borussia Moenchengladbach 2-0, with veteran Thomas Mueller playing his last home game for the club. Bayern officially won the title on May 4 when defending champions Bayer Leverkusen were held to a 2-2 draw at Freiburg, but were presented with the Bundesliga shield in front of their home fans at full-time. Dripping wet after being showered with beer by teammates, Kane said the title win was “an incredible feeling,” and hoped it would be “the first of many.” “It’s been lot of hard work, a lot of
Taiwanese e-sports veteran Lin “ET” Chia-hung yesterday successfully defended his King of Fighters XV title at this year’s Evolution Championship Series: Japan (EVO Japan), securing his second consecutive championship. Lin claimed victory with a 3-1 win over Japanese pro gamer “mok” in the grand final, repeating his earlier 3-1 win against the same opponent in the winners’ final. The 40-year-old earned a ¥1 million (US$6,897) cash prize at the two-day tournament, which drew 294 competitors. Mok, Lin’s toughest rival in the bracket, took home ¥400,000 as runner-up. Lin remains undefeated in match sets against mok in King of Fighters XV, holding a 10-0 record,
Batting great Virat Kohli yesterday announced his immediate retirement from Test cricket, just days before India name their squad for a tour to England. Kohli, who scored 9,230 runs in 123 matches at an average of 46.85, posted his decision on Instagram five days after India captain Rohit Sharma called time on his own Test career. Since making his debut in 2011, Kohli struck 30 hundreds and 31 fifties with a highest score of 254 not out, mainly batting at number four in the order. “It’s been 14 years since I first wore the baggy blue in Test cricket,” the