According to Law 37.1.1 relating to the circumstances of Gunathilaka’s dismissal, a player is out if he/she “wilfully attempts to obstruct or distract the fielding side by word or action”
Sri Lanka opener Danushka Gunathilaka was given out in his side’s first ODI against West Indies after being accused of obstructing the field.
Having defended a ball from West Indies captain Kieron Pollard, Gunathilaka appeared to set off for a quick single, before declining the run and attempting to retreat to his crease.
In doing so, however, he was adjudged to have kicked the ball away as Pollard bore down on the ball, with the batsman still out of his ground and, therefore, a runout still possible.
According to Law 37.1.1 relating to the circumstances of Gunathilaka’s dismissal, a player is out if he/she “wilfully attempts to obstruct or distract the fielding side by word or action”.
Law 37.2 clarifies: “A batsman shall not be out obstructing the field if obstruction or distraction is accidental or obstruction is in order to avoid injury.”
Danushka Gunathilaka given out for obstructing the field ☝️
— The Cricketer (@TheCricketerMag) March 10, 2021
Correct decision? 🤔pic.twitter.com/MyqCn8Fd0K
In a case where the batsman is preventing the ball from rolling onto the stumps, he/she is permitted to kick the ball away – or “make a second strike” in order to guard their wicket.
However, the episode was referrred to the third umpire, along with a soft signal of out. In talking through his decision after it was reviewed by the on-field officials, third umpire Nigel Duguid declared that Gunathilaka had “kicked the ball away, obstructing the field”, implying that he viewed the action to be deliberate.
As a result, he becomes the 11th man to be dismissed in this manner in international cricket, following Jason Roy, Len Hutton, Xavier Marshall, Inzamam, Ramiz Raja, Ben Stokes, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohinder Amarnath, Hassan Rasheed and Anwar Ali.
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