The video examples presented at the IPL captains' meeting offered a closer look at how the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) interprets "complete control" while taking a catch. The presentation, details of which were @L0$, included several past dismissals cited as reference points, with BCCI experts indicating that some of those decisions were illegal according to their interpretation of the law.
Among the cases highlighted, in footage accessed by Cricbuzz, were Roston Chase in a T20I against Bangladesh in Kingstown in December 2024 and Angelo Mathews in a Test against Australia in Galle in February 2025. Both were dismissed at key junctures, and their teams went on to lose.
Ayush Badoni against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Hyderabad last year adds to that list. The Lucknow Supergiants (LSG) batter was adjudged out when he should not have been. Fortunately for LSG, the dubious dismissal did not cost them the match. They went on to beat the home side by five wickets.
Javagal Srinath, the BCCI's chief match referee, and Nitin Menon, umpires' panel head, are clear that Badoni was wrongly given out - just as Mathews in Galle and Chase in the Caribbean in the aforementioned matches. In all three cases, it was felt that the fielder was not in complete control.
The entire exercise served as a reminder to captains on incomplete catches and premature celebrations, while also highlighting how the interpretation of the playing condition can vary from umpire to umpire and referee to referee.
@B0$
In this instance, Mathews was on 76 when he attempted a sweep off Nathan Lyon in the second innings. Beau Webster completed a tumbling catch, but the BCCI experts do not deem it a fair grab. Their verdict: @B1$
Cricbuzz's ball-by-ball commentary of the dismissal went like this:
@I0$
Adrian Holdstock and Joel Wilson were the on-field umpires, with Jeff Crowe serving as the match referee. Sri Lanka lost the Test and the series 2-0.
@B2$
It was always a doubtful catch by Mahedi Hasan at mid-off and Cricbuzz's ball-by-ball commentary mentioned it as much. There was an element of suspicion whether the fielder's body was in control and curiously enough the catch was declared fair by the third umpire. The BCCI verdict was: @B3$
This is how Cricbuzz's ball-by-ball commentary went like:
@I1$
Deighton Butler and Leslie Reifer were the on-field umpires and Zahid Bassarath was the TV umpire. Jeff Crowe, again, was the match referee. Chase was out for a duck and the West Indies lost the match (by 80 runs) and the series (3-0).
@B4$
The dismissal did not cost Lucknow Supergiants dearly as they went on to win their away match against Sunrisers Hyderabad last year but the running-diving catch by Harshal Patel looked suspicious as his movement did not appear to be fully in control. The BCCI experts thought so too. Their verdict: @B5$
Cricbuzz's ball-by-ball commentary went like this:
@I2$
Ulhas Gandhe and Abhijit Bhattacharya were the on-field umpires and Narayanan Kutty was the match referee.
@B6$
Saud Shakeel was caught by Matt Henry at the boundary line off Will O'Rourke. The catch was clean and the verdict was straightforward too. BCCI's verdict: @B7$
Cricbuzz's ball-by-ball commentary is below:
@I3$
Pakistan lost the match 60 runs. Richard Kettleborough and Sharfuddoula were the umpires. Andy Pycroft was the match referee.
@B8$
BCCI pundits signed off on Nqabayomzi Peter's catch off Kwena Maphaka, which resonated with Herschelle Gibbs' 'iconic' drop off Steve Waugh in the 1999 World Cup. Umpires ruled that Cameron Green's full-blooded shot had been taken fairly by Peter with a diving effort at mid-wicket, even though the subsequent throw did not go as intended - like Gibbs'. Both the on-field umpires and BCCI experts upheld the decision. The verdict: @B9$
Cricbuzz's ball-by-ball commentary of the wicket goes like this:
@I4$
Australia lost the match by 53 runs. Phillip Gillespie and Shawn Craig were the on-field umpires and Andy Pycroft was the match referee.
In all the above instances, the BCCI pundits went in letter and spirit by the Clause 33.3 of the Match Playing Conditions (MPC) which states: "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 own movement."
