England’s county cricket club Leicestershire has suffered huge losses due to bad pitch. The club has been fined £5,000 (₹6.43 lakh). Along with this, 27 marks have also been deducted. Because of this the club is on the verge of being out of Division One. Sourav Ganguly’s biopic is being shot on the grounds of this club. The club blamed film shooting for the poor pitch. However, the Cricket Discipline Panel did not accept this argument and imposed a heavy fine on the club.
The match referee ruled that Leicestershire had prepared a poor pitch against Glamorgan in the County Championship match. This match took place between 20 and 23 August. The Cricket Discipline Panel also held the club responsible for the poor pitch and handed down punishment.
Did not get victory points
Leicestershire won the match against Glamorgan by 42 runs, but the panel deducted 19 points from the win. Along with this, a penalty of 8 points was imposed. The club now has 10 days to appeal the decision. If Leicestershire do not appeal or their next appeal is also rejected, the club remains at risk of relegation from Division One.
Case related to Ganguly’s film shooting
Leicestershire head groundsman Callum Lewin linked the matter to the shooting of Sourav Ganguly’s biopic. He said, “This time it is a used pitch. There were two T20 matches on it 10 weeks ago. There were many conditions before the game which were beyond my control, like the weather was 35 degrees. There was also an unscheduled Bollywood filming event four days before, and I was not allowed to work on the pitch. I was not allowed to cover it or do anything.”
It is important to win the last match
Leicestershire has 89 points from 12 matches. To remain in the top tier of the County Championship they must beat Hampshire in their Division One match. The club said it was assessing its situation legally. After this further decision will be taken. The club can appeal against the penalty of points and heavy fine.