"Return the World Cup" - Twitterati slams Stuart Broad for calling MCC law change 'unfair'

Twitter reactions to Stuart Broad's Tweet on MCC rule changes.
Twitter reactions to Stuart Broad's Tweet on MCC rule changes.

Fans, journalists and members of the cricket fraternity on Twitter weren't too impressed with England pacer Stuart Broad's opinion on the latest changes in the run-out laws.

Running out a non-striker before delivering the ball, also known as 'Mankading', used to be considered 'unfair play' by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC)'s laws. On Wednesday, the MCC brought it under the ambit of its law 38 which governs normal run-outs. The rules will apply from October 1.

Reacting to the change, Broad took to his Twitter account to say that he feels it's 'unfair' because dismissing a batter requires skills while such run-outs don't. The tweet immediately invited a deluge of comments and retweets. Although some fans agreed with the 35-year-old Englishman's opinion, most disagreed.

Some countered him on the 'skill' logic. Some brought up the infamous incident from the 2013 Ashes when Broad didn't walk after clearly nicking the ball to slips. A few slammed him for using the word 'Mankad' - derived from Vinoo Mankad, one of India's greatest all-rounders. Others brought up England's 2019 World Cup win.

The following are some of the best of the reactions to Broad's tweet:

"It is legitimate, it is a run-out" - MCC Laws Manager

Explaining the thinking behind the change, Fraser Stewart, MCC Laws Manager, admitted to the Times that bowlers are always "painted as the villain" for running out the non-striker.

He announced that the dismissal is legitimate and warrants being in the run-out section of the law book, saying:

"The bowler is always painted as the villain but it is a legitimate way to dismiss someone and it is the non-striker who is stealing the ground. It is legitimate, it is a run-out and therefore it should live in the run-out section of the laws."

There have been other changes to the laws as well, including the banning of saliva to shine the ball and the judgment of wides. The 2022 T20 World Cup will be the first major ICC tournament under the new rules.

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