ICC Trials Stop Clock in Men's T20I: West Indies vs. England Opening Match
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has revealed its latest initiative to accelerate the tempo of play in international cricket. It has declared the commencement of a stop-clock trial, set to begin with the opening men's T20I clash between the West Indies and England on December in Barbados. According to the ICC, the stop-clock trial is scheduled to take place in full-member men's ODI and T20I matches, totaling around 59 fixtures from December 2023 to April 2024. The trial received prior approval from the chief executive's committee during their meeting in Ahmedabad last month.
"The stop clock trial in white-ball international cricket follows the introduction of a successful new playing condition in 2022, which resulted in the fielding team only being allowed four fielders outside of the inner circle if they were not in a position to bowl the first ball of their final over in the stipulated time". "We are continually looking at ways to speed up the pace of play across international cricket. The outcomes of the stop clock trial will be assessed at the end of the trial period", said Wasim Khan, ICC General Manager Cricket, in a statement.
The stop clock initiative entails limiting the time taken between overs, requiring the bowling team to commence bowling the first ball of the subsequent over within 60 seconds of completing the previous one. If the team fails to meet this requirement for the third time in an innings, following two warnings, a five-run penalty will be imposed against the fielding team. Last year, the ICC introduced an in-match penalty in ODIs and T20Is, applicable to both men's and women's cricket, as a measure to address the slow overrate issue.
According to the regulation, if the fielding team neglects to commence the final over within the designated time frame for an inning, one fielder will be relocated from beyond the 30-yard circle, bringing them inside the circle. In 2018, the MCC World Cricket Committee, featuring former men's international cricket captains such as Ricky Ponting, Sourav Ganguly, and Kumar Sangakkara, had suggested the implementation of a 'shot clock' as a measure to address the issue of slow over-rates.
