"Batsman has no business wandering out of his crease"- Ravi Shastri's no-nonsense statement on Deepti Sharma-Charlie Dean controversy

Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri gave his opinion on the 'spirit of cricket' debate that has sparked up ever since all-rounder Deepti Sharma ran out England's Charlie Dean on the non-striker's end.

The Women in Blue needed just one wicket to win the game and Deepti pretty much played within the laws of the game by running the non-striker out. Many former England cricketers, as well as those in the English media, questioned the sportsman spirit of the Indian team.

However, speaking to Fox Sports, Ravi Shastri backed Deepti Sharma and co. and said that there was absolutely nothing wrong in what they did. He said:

"My thoughts are very clear. It's a law. A batsman has no business wandering out of his crease before the ball is bowled. And the law in cricket says that if you are doing that, the bowler is perfectly entitled to take the bails off. "

Ravi Shastri even claimed that as a coach, he would have backed his team to use this to their advantage because it is within the laws of the game. He added:

"As a coach, I would tell my players 'Just go out and do it. It's a law. You're not cheating, you're not doing anything that is not part of the game. Batsman should know his business."

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Ravi Shastri feels 'warning a player' is unnecessary

Many felt that although Deepti played within the laws of the game, she should have atleast warned Dean about the latter backing up too much. However, Ravi Shastri rubbished this argument as he feels it is like any other mode of dismissal where batters aren't warned anyway.

On this, he stated:

"I don't believe this practice when you warn the player the first time and the second time you can do it. It's like me telling a fielder, 'You've dropped me once. Second time you can catch it'. If it's a law that says it is cheating. It is cheating because if you're going out of crease, you are trying to steal an advantage over the opposition and the bowler."

Can the T20 World Cup 2022 witness at least one such run-out? Let us know in the comments.