Sport Today

What's with all this I hear about Gooch being given out "Handled the ball"???
I thought it was okay to do this in the SOLE interest of protecting your wicket.
(i.e; same as hit the ball twice etc...).

Chris.

rajagopalan

You can kick the ball away or hit it with your bat a second time, with the sole
intention of protecting your stumps. (A second hit to get runs is out for
hitting the ball twice. A kick of the ball to avoid runout would be obstructing
the field. Hence intent is everything.) The only possible scenario to touch the
ball with your hands if you are batting is one where the hand that touches the
ball is also holding the bat, in which case it is considered part of the bat
(and you can be given out caught, even if the ball touches that hand, not the
actual wood of the bat.)

See, wasn't that simple!  :-)

--
Rob.

        Shivanand

        Q: If I use my bat a second time to defend my stumps, but the
        World's Greatest Short Leg (Boon) snatches it before it hits the
        ground.  Am I out caught?  [my guess is no]
           There might be a difference if the bat is used for the second
        time before or after the ball has hit the ground after being hit for
        the first time.  I'd guess out if the ball hasn't grounded in between
        the two hits, not out if it has.

     From a discussion late at night whilst under the influence.....

            David.

--
   ___          ~~            | David J. Low, Atmospheric Group, Dept. Physics
  /  /-----^-/~~~             | Adelaide University, South Australia
 /  /-------/~  "I'll be back"|

I think the answer is yes. As it happens, I'm pretty certain that something
similar to this happened to John Inverarity (?) about 10 years back
against Qld I think. According to the radio commentary, (all from fading
memory), he played the ball into the ground, bounced back up, catching the bat
- the close fielder caught it and it's "Sir, I have reason to believe the
batsman has been dismissed." Anyway, as the batsman was walking back, he was
recalled, so all ended well. (Details are sketchy, but I do recall hearing the
commentary on this most odd incident.)

--
Rob. (who remembers seeing Carl Rackemann bowling at the Gabba in 1979-80 for
Qld against the Poms. I feel like a dinosaur.)

You're wrong, its out, provided it hasn't hit the ground after being hit
the first time (as you suggest in the next paragraph).

Law 32.2 ..

        A catch shall be considered to have been fairly made if

        (d) A fieldsman catches the ball, after it has been lawfully
        played a second time by the striker, but only if the ball has
        not touched the ground since being first struck.

kre