It seems every now and then, a boundary catch comes along and sends us over to the rule book of cricket to clarify what constitutes wonderful athleticism and a legal catch.
Michael Neser, playing for Brisbane Heat, pulled off a brilliant feat in the Big Bash League match against Sydney Sixers on New Year’s day.
So, first things first. Was the catch legal? Or should it have been a six?
Per the laws as published by MCC and the playing conditions of ICC across formats, it is 100% a legal catch. There is nothing wrong with what Michael Neser did.
19.4 Ball grounded beyond the boundary
19.4.1 The ball in play is grounded beyond the boundary if it touches
- the boundary or any part of an object used to mark the boundary;
- the ground beyond the boundary;
- any object that is grounded beyond the boundary.
19.4.2 The ball in play is to be regarded as being grounded beyond the boundary if
- a fielder, grounded beyond the boundary as in clause 19.5, touches the ball;
- a fielder, after catching the ball within the boundary, becomes grounded beyond the boundary while in contact with the ball, before completing the catch.
19.5 Fielder grounded beyond the boundary
19.5.1 A fielder is grounded beyond the boundary if some part of his person is in contact with any of the following:
- the boundary or any part of an object used to mark the boundary;
- the ground beyond the boundary;
- any object that is in contact with the ground beyond the boundary;
- another fielder who is grounded beyond the boundary.
19.5.2 A fielder who is not in contact with the ground is considered to be grounded beyond the boundary if his final contact with the ground, before his first contact with the ball after it has been delivered by the bowler, was not entirely within the boundary.
While the wording of the rule is often seen to confusing, Glenn Maxwell observed rightly on commentary, the important thing to note is that the first contact was inside the legal field of play and he is not grounded beyond the boundary any point after that before completing catch.
With some observers suggesting a fielder could just stand beyond the fence and could do this, miss the point that the first contact rule will be broken in that scenario.
More details on the catch and past incidents similar to this in the report here.
Here are some reactions to the dismissal:
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