Law 24 of the Marylebone Cricket Club’s Laws of Cricket details the regulations regarding players, fielders, substitutes, runners, and practice. A clause of this law explains the rules regarding penalty time in cricket.
Penalty time in cricket is largely due to an improper conduct by a fielder. The captain of the side has to ensure that before the match begins, all the fielders must be present on the ground. If a fielder fails to reach the ground before the scheduled time of the start of the match, then the reason of their absence must be reported to the on-field umpire. Moreover, this absentee can take to the field only after the consent of the umpire. Should the umpire give consent, then the fielder is allowed to field. However, they can bowl only after serving a penalty time.
The penalty time for a fielder is equal to the total time they spent off the field. The penalty time of a fielder cannot exceed 90 minutes. If the fielder leaves the field before or while serving the penalty time, then a new penalty time is added to the old penalty time. Penalty time is not calculated for a fielder who had to leave the field for a genuine reason like an injury or illness.
If a player who is subject to penalty time enters the field without the permission of the umpire, then a number of repercussions come into picture.
- The umpire can deem the next ball wide or no ball. This leads to the batting side gets an extra run, and in case of a no ball, a free hit.
- The umpire can also deem the ball dead.
- A penalty of 5 runs is imposed on the fielding side. This decision is best left on the umpire’s best judgement.
- The number of runs scored by a batter on the delivery where the fielder’s improper conduct was discovered are added to the penalty runs imposed.
- The umpires report the instance of the penalty time to the match referees and the captains of both sides.
Penalty time is thus a disciplinarian law that the umpires keep a keen eye on.
