Women's T20 World Cup has started in UAE. On its first day, there was a big ruckus in the match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Actually, Sri Lankan batsman Nilakshi de Silva was first given out on the ball of Nashra Sandhu. Immediately after this, the umpires reversed the decision and declared it a dead ball. Because his handkerchief had fallen while bowling. Due to this Nilakshi was saved from getting out. There was a lot of debate on this decision of the umpires. Do you know why the umpires took this decision?

Why was there chaos in Pakistan-Sri Lanka match?

Before knowing about the rules regarding handkerchief in cricket, it is important to know what happened in the match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Pakistan won the toss and decided to bat first. Sri Lanka bowled brilliantly and restricted them to just 116 runs. While chasing it, Sri Lanka had scored 51 runs at the loss of 4 wickets in 12 overs. Nashara Sandhu came to bowl the first ball of the 13th innings, while Nilakshi de Silva was present at the crease.

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While Nashra was throwing the ball, his handkerchief fell on the field. Nilakshi tried to sweep this ball but she missed the ball and was out on the demand of LBW. Then he complained to the umpire about the handkerchief falling. After taking advice from the third umpire, this ball was declared a dead ball and she was saved from getting out. There was a lot of debate regarding this decision. Some fans say that the batsman should have been given out because he played the shot.

What is the rule regarding handkerchief?

According to clause 20.4.2.6 of the MCC rules, if the batsman standing on strike is distracted by any sound or movement or any other reason before playing the ball, then it will be declared a dead ball. Same thing happened in the case of Nilakshi, the Pakistani bowler's handkerchief had fallen even before he could play the shot. However, this did not cause any significant loss to Pakistan. Pakistan team managed to win this match by 31 runs.

Recently, a similar incident was seen in the County Championship also. Shoaib Bashir was bowled by Kyle Abbott in the match between Somerset and Hampshire. But due to Abbott's handkerchief falling, the ball was considered a dead ball and he was saved from being out.