The MCC has released a statement on Saturday's 'Mankad' incident, confirming that the controversial dismissal of Charlie Dean was officiated correctly.
England were within 17 runs of winning their ODI match against India with just one wicket remaining, but were left shocked after bowler Deepti Sharma ceased her run up and knocked the bails off at the non-striker's end.
Dean was left noticeably upset by the run out, which many pundits labelled unsportsmanlike in the aftermath, and has prompted a clarification on the change in the rules.
The change, set for October 1, put's onus back on the batter to remain behind the crease, changing the action of being run out at the non-striker's end from being 'unfair play' to being confirmed as a run out.
In a statement posted on their website, the MCC stated that while the change in the rules won't come into effect until next month, the controversial decision was still correct.
"This change will formally come into effect from 1 October 2022. This was done to clarify this matter and to place an onus on batters to ensure that they do not leave the crease at the non-striker’s end, prior to a bowler releasing the ball," the statement read.
"The Law is clear, as it needs to be for all umpires to be able to easily interpret throughout all levels of the game and at all moments in the game.
"Cricket is a broad church and the spirit by which it is played is no different. As custodians of the Spirit of Cricket, MCC appreciates its application is interpreted differently across the globe.
"Respectful debate is healthy and should continue, as where one person sees the bowler as breaching the Spirit in such examples, another will point at the non-striker gaining an unfair advantage by leaving their ground early.
"MCC's message to non-strikers continues to be to remain in their ground until they have seen the ball leave the bowler's hand. Then dismissals, such as the one seen yesterday, cannot happen.
"Whilst yesterday was indeed an unusual end to an exciting match, it was properly officiated and should not be considered as anything more."
