England made the showpiece event by beating Australia in their semi-final, but the team outraged fans earlier in the tournament after a batter refused to walk despite being given out leg before wicket (LBW).
The batter, Temoor Alam, was given out by the umpire when England were 62-2 in the 19th over of their innings against India in a group match, but he stayed put and claimed he had hit the ball and could therefore not be given out LBW.
“He’s holding his bat out, he can’t do that,” the match commentator said during the broadcast.
“Temoor Alam, you’ve got to walk, you cannot do that. Off you go, sir.”
The commentator explained issues of dissent towards officials were made a priority by the tournament’s committee.
England over-60 batter Temoor Alam was charged with dissent after he refused to walk despite being given out LBW. Photo / Council of Canada Masters Cricket
“It’s how you judge dissent. I think that’s a clear example, folks, and he carried on walking, Temoor Alam, right down to the other end gesticulating to his bat and pointing at umpire Danny Singh.”
After a 15-minute delay the decision was overturned, with the commentator apologising to viewers.
“The decision has been reversed. Not out. Well, 15 minutes or so that took, folks, and apologies for me ranting and raving on, but I will guarantee you it’s not the last we’ve heard of this.”
Alam was dismissed after scoring 10 more runs, with his contribution helping England reach 167-7 and beat India by eight runs.
The judiciary panel charged Alam with dissent and captain Edward George Lennox, who was batting at the same time, with breaching the spirit of the game.
England Cricket Seniors accepted both decisions and Alam was given a one-match ban, which he has already served in the semi-final.
This controversy comes weeks after an alleged cheating scandal in England’s northeast, where cricketer Brian Devine, dubbed “Clicky Ponting”, was allegedly seen clicking his fingers to trick umpires into believing a ball had been edged off the bat.
The North Yorkshire and South Durham League announced they would investigate Saltburn Cricket Club over the claims, after the action received widespread condemnation from the English cricket community.
Statistics from the season show Saltburn’s wicketkeeper had made 31 catches in his eight matches before the controversy, including eight in one innings, with some suggesting the clicking tactic could have contributed to these figures.