England county cricket club Leicestershire have been handed a 27-point penalty for breaching pitch regulations, leaving them facing a relegation battle. The deduction was imposed over the quality of the pitch at Grace Road, with the club’s head groundsman arguing that the conditions were caused by extreme heat and a Bollywood film shoot just days before a match. The punishment has dropped Leicestershire to the bottom of the Division One table and put their survival hopes under serious pressure. However, the club still has time to challenge the decision, with the deadline for an appeal set for September 29.
The Cricket Discipline Panel upheld the Cricket Regulator’s charge that Leicestershire had prepared a “poor pitch” for their County Championship match against Glamorgan, played from August 20 to 23. The panel found the club responsible for the pitch conditions. The Bollywood film shoot reportedly involved a forthcoming biopic on former India captain Sourav Ganguly, adding another unusual element to the controversy surrounding the pitch.
“There was a lot of circumstances leading up to the game that were just out of my control, such as the weather was 35 degrees (Celsius, 95 Fahrenheit) and we had an unscheduled Bollywood filming event four days before,” Lewin told the England and Wales Cricket Board’s regulator. “I wasn’t allowed to work on the pitch. I wasn’t allowed to cover it or anything.”
As a consequence, Lewin said the moisture readings were below expected, despite heavy watering to compensate for eight continuous hours of exposure to a blazing sun.
But his argument was not viewed as a valid excuse by the regulator since the filming only lasted one day and it was ultimately down to the club to take preventative measures.
“Risk management should have envisaged the need to incorporate protection of the pitch during the Bollywood event,” the regulator wrote.
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Leicestershire was playing Hampshire in its penultimate match of the season when the decision came out late on Wednesday night.
Following that match, there was one round left, with Leicestershire away to Warwickshire starting on Sept. 24.
Leicestershire considering all options
Leicestershire acknowledged the Cricket Discipline Panel’s decision and said the club is now reviewing its position before deciding on its next course of action. The penalty includes an eight-point deduction, a further eight points suspended until the end of the 2027 season, and a £5,000 fine.
“The Club notes the Cricket Discipline Panel’s decision, which imposes an eight-point deduction, an additional eight-point deduction suspended until the end of the 2027 season, and a financial penalty of £5,000.
“Having received the Panel’s decision, the Club is reviewing its position and considering all available options,” the club said in a statement.