It’s a shame that the most controversial mode of dismissal in cricket is named after a fine Indian cricketer – Vinoo Mankad. The iconic Indian all-rounder has forever been associated with the running out of batsmen at the non-striker’s end by a bowler before the ball has been released. No other cricketer has the ignominy of having his name associated with an improper act in the game, which is unfortunate in itself.
‘Mankading’ is right in the middle of the grey area of cricket. When exactly has a bowler completed his delivery stride? Should the batsman at the non-striker’s end be given a warning before being run-out? If it is within the rules of the game, why is the fielding team pilloried?
On Monday, another Indian – Kings XI Punjab captain Ravi Ashwin – used that mode of dismissal to end Rajasthan Royal star batsman Jos Buttler’s stay at the crease and start a dramatic collapse that resulted in victory for Punjab in their IPL clash.
Should Ashwin have warned Buttler before running him out in the 13th over of a tense chase? Did Buttler really try to gain an unfair advantage as Ashwin seemed to pause in his delivery stride, at which point Buttler was inside the crease? Was Ashwin waiting for Buttler to leave the crease before running him out?
At this point the batsman is still inside the crease and then Ashwin waited for him to leave... this way you can get 10 wickets in 10 balls!!! #RRvKXIP #IPL2019 pic.twitter.com/Vx8oV8Oy0p
— TheStumpCam (@theStumpCam) March 25, 2019
Fans will look at this incident depending upon which side of the ‘Mankand’ line they are on. Those who see it as a fair mode of dismissal will point to the fact that according to existing rules, Ashwin was within his rights to run Buttler out without giving a warning.
Those against the mode of dismissal will say that if Ashwin’s actions were OK, then bowlers will soon start ‘pausing’ in their delivery stride and run every other batsman out. At least until such time when batsmen simply stop leaving the crease before the bowler has released the ball.
So while it is Buttler who made the mistake of leaving the crease early, it is Ashwin who has been made the villain. Many didn’t notice that Buttler was backing up a couple of balls earlier in the over as well. And the Englishman has been ‘Mankaded’ before in international cricket – by Sri Lanka in 2014 after being warned multiple times then. But it’s Ashwin’s actions and the surreptitious nature of how he went about it that leave a bad taste in the mouth.
The biggest talking points are that Ashwin didn’t warn Buttler earlier – which is standard practice in such incidents to reduce the burden of blame on the fielding team – and that the Punjab skipper had suspiciously long pause in his delivery stride before running out the non-striker, which raises questions about whether it was a spur-of-the-moment action or a planned wicket (which is also perfectly fine, it has to be said).
So no matter how much Ashwin talks about the crease being ‘his space’ as well, the way he went about dismissing Buttler does not sit well with fans of the game. The strong reactions from outside India are proof of it and no amount of references to the rule book will change that. If it looks bad and feels bad, it stays bad.
‘Mankading’ is anyhow looked down upon. And Ashwin has opened himself up to endless criticism and similarly cheeky attempts with the Buttler run-out. He did not break any rules but he hasn’t gained any admirers either. And until the dismissal is outlawed, we will keep debating it.
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