Mankad: England bowler Stuart Broad and Michael Atherton offer opposing views on new MCC law
The 'Mankad' is where a bowler runs out the non-striking batter in their delivery stride if that batter is out of his crease; 'Mankad' dismissals will no longer be considered unfair play under a new set of laws announced by the MCC on Tuesday
Last Updated: 09/03/22 3:18pm
England bowler Stuart Broad has questioned the MCC's decision to officially legitimise 'Mankad' dismissals and claimed they require "zero skill", while Michael Atherton has backed the rule clarification.
The 'Mankad' - which is named after former India spinner Vinoo Mankad - is where a bowler runs out the non-striking batter in their delivery stride if that batter is out of his crease.
'Mankad' dismissals will no longer be considered unfair play under a new set of laws announced by the MCC on Tuesday, but Broad has taken news of that official change to task.
Broad, Test cricket's sixth most successful bowler with 537 wickets, replied to a Sky Sports post on Twitter: "So the Mankad is no longer unfair & is now a legitimate dismissal.
"Hasn't it always been a legitimate dismissal & whether it is unfair is subjective?
"I think it is unfair & wouldn't consider it, as IMO (in my opinion), dismissing a batter is about skill & the Mankad requires zero skill."
Atherton: Bowlers shouldn't face stigma
Former England captain Atherton has backed the MCC announcement, suggesting it was necessary to take the "stigma" away from bowlers.
"A Mankad only comes about because batters are out of their ground," Atherton told Sky Sports News. "Whether it's just absent-mindedly or whether they're deliberately trying to gain ground to make it easier to run a quick single or get back for a second, a Mankad only results from that possibility.
"I've always thought it's totally unfair for the stigma to be on the bowler when it's the batter who is stealing ground, so I agree with the law change.
"I think it shouldn't have that stigma and there's a simple fact that, if the batter stays in their ground, you can't have a Mankad.
"I was always taught as a kid, you stay in your ground with your bat and you look up and wait until the bowler's released the ball and then you move, and if that happens you won't have any Mankads.
"You don't want bowlers Mankading people left, right and centre, but the responsibility is not with the bowlers, it's with the batters. Stay in your ground until the bowler's released the ball, don't try to steal ground, and there'll be no Mankading."
Among other law changes introduced by the MCC, the use of saliva on the ball will be banned in October and considered tampering.
The ban was a playing condition in most forms of the game after cricket resumed in 2020 following the outbreak of coronavirus.
The law around judging a wide has also been amended, given batters are now moving laterally around the crease more before the ball is bowled.
