Concussion substitute in cricket: Why has Yuzvendra Chahal replaced Ravindra Jadeja in Canberra T20I?

Dixit Bhargav | 04/12/2020
Concussion substitute in cricket: Why has Yuzvendra Chahal replaced Ravindra Jadeja in Canberra T20I?

Yuzvendra Chahal replaced Ravindra Jadeja: The Indian leg-spinner will bowl in place of the injured all-rounder in the second innings.

During the first T20I of the ongoing India’s tour of Australia in Canberra, India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has been ruled out of the second innings after getting hit on the helmet while scoring a career-best 44* (23) with the help of five fours and a six.

It all happened on the second delivery of the last over when Jadeja’s attempt of hitting a short delivery from Australia pacer Mitchell Starc saw him top-edging the ball onto his helmet. While Jadeja continued to bat and score a couple of boundaries in the last over, he was declared unfit to take the field in the second innings.

The same seemed to have received an objection from Australia head coach Justin Langer who wasn’t looking happy with the decision when being communicated by match referee David Boon.

Why has Yuzvendra Chahal replaced Ravindra Jadeja in Canberra T20I?

Concussion substitutes, which were introduced before last year’s Ashes series in England, were among the five rule amendments which were made to cricket to prevent the COVID-19 pandemic from impacting matches.

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Adhering to the same, India had the option of replacing Jadeja with Chahal who was their “nearest” like-for-like replacement for the southpaw. While some are arguing about a specialist spinner replacing an all-rounder, the same was done keeping in mind that India would be bowling in the second innings.

Been introduced into the attack by India captain Virat Kohli in the eighth over, Chahal made early inroads by dismissing Australia captain Aaron Finch (35) and batsman Steven Smith (12) to jostle the hosts in a 162-run chase.

Concussion substitute law in Cricket

“The ICC Match Referee should ordinarily approve a Concussion Replacement Request if the replacement is a like-for-like player whose inclusion will not excessively advantage his team for the remainder of the match.

“In assessing whether the nominated Concussion Replacement should be considered a like-for-like player, the ICC Match Referee should consider the likely role the concussed player would have played during the remainder of the match, and the normal role that would be performed by the nominated Concussion Replacement.”

Post Edited By: Dixit Bhargav
Australia India India tour of Australia 2020-21 Ravindra Jadeja Yuzvendra Chahal

About the author

Dixit Bhargav

Born and brought up in Pathankot, Dixit Bhargav is an engineering and sports management graduate who works as a Cricket Editor at The SportsRush. Having written more than 10,000 articles across more than five years at TSR, his first cricketing memory dates back to 2002 when former India captain Sourav Ganguly had waved his jersey at the historic Lord’s balcony. What followed for an 8-year-old was an instant adulation for both Ganguly and the sport. The optimist in him is waiting for the day when Punjab Kings will win their maiden Indian Premier League title. When not watching cricket, he is mostly found in a cinema hall watching a Punjabi movie.

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