LSG vs RCB: Was Wanindu Hasaranga’s catch legal? Should Deepak Hooda have been given out?

He had held the ball for a decently long while, twisted and turned on the ground, before he released it. Why wasn’t it given out?

It’s the Law 33.3.

“The act of making a catch shall start from the time when the ball first comes into contact with a fielder’s person and shall end when a fielder obtains complete control over both the ball and his/her own movement,” is the exact text of the law.

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Wanindu Hasaranga’s frantic effort near the boundary ropes to save a six.

WATCH: https://t.co/W59d3bLHNP

— Express Sports (@IExpressSports) May 26, 2022

He had control over the ball but not of his own movement and had to release it before he could achieve that control.

This is what happened:

Deepak Hooda slapped a Harshal Patel short ball between cover and point. As the ball plunged ground-wards, Wanindu Hasaranga, tearing away from deep point, grabbed the ball. But the velocity of his sprint was so unstoppable that he could not apply the brakes and complete the catch. He would invariably crash onto the advertising cushions. He crash-landed onto the grass and looked pleadingly at his distant colleagues. If only someone was in his vicinity, he could have flung the ball at him and completed a relay catch. The next alternative was to deny the six, which he smartly managed. As he slid, he ensured that the flap of his pants was not touching the cushion (not the age of bell bottoms or boot cut, thankfully). He tried to pause his slide, he was no gymnast, and by the time he saw a fielder’s silhouette, he was too late and hurled the ball in the air. He quickly gathered himself, but the ball had already made its landing. Hasaranga smiled sheepishly, he was still ruing the catch he could not complete. But at least he saved five runs.