Kiran More recalls the ball-tampering incidents of India-Pakistan bilateral series in 1989

Former wicket-keeper batsman Kiran More has revealed shocking ball-tampering incidents during the India-Pakistan series in 1989.  The Indian team were in Pakistan for a four-match Test series as well as a four-match ODI series. 1983 World Cup winner Krishnamachari Srikkanth had led the side on that tour. In that series, a young 16-year-old Sachin Tendulkar had made his first-ever appearance at the highest level whereas, future pace sensation Waqar Younis had made his international debut for Pakistan.

'Nobody used to complain': Kiran More

“In those days, scratching the ball was allowed, so you used to get reverse swing, big time”  . “It was like, nobody used to complain from both sides. Everybody used to scratch the ball and reverse swing the ball. It was difficult to bat, it was not easy to bat. Even Manoj Prabhakar learned on that tour how to scratch that ball and reverse swing that ball and Pakistan found it challenging,” said More while interacting on 'The Greatest Rivalry' podcast.

 

The ball-tampering incidents and its consequences

The ball-tampering incident has been considered as a serious offence since the beginning of the new millennium and the players have either been fined or suspended for this act. The Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar was banned for one match for his alleged involvement in a ball-tampering incident during a Test match against South Africa in 2001. TV cameras showed Tendulkar cleaning the seam of the ball but, because he hadn’t notified umpires he was doing it, it fell under the regulations for altering the condition of the ball.

Former Indian skipper Rahul Dravid was caught on camera applying lozenge on the ball during an ODI match against Zimbabwe in January 2004. He was fined 50 percent of his match fees.

In March 2018, Steve Smith, David Warner, and Colin Bancroft were caught for their involvement in the infamous ball-tampering scandal that had shocked the cricket world. This had happened during Australia's away Test series against South Africa in Newlands, Cape Town.  Bancroft was handed a nine-month ban from international cricket whereas, Smith and Warner were banned for 12 months and were also stripped from their captaincy and vice-captaincy respectively. They were also fined 100% of their match fees. 

READ: England Vs West Indies Test Live Updates: Stumps On Day 1 Leave England At 35/1