How Indian cricketers debunked England's 'spirit of cricket' debate after Deepti's run-out

Indian women's Team player Deepti Sharma on Saturday found herself at the centre of a controversy after she dismissed Charlie Dean at the non-striker's end during the third ODI against England. Deepti ran out Charlie after seeing that the England batter was constantly going too far ahead of the crease. At the time of Charlie's dismissal, England needed 16 off 39 balls with just 1 wicket remaining. Charlie's dismissal saw India winning the match by 16 runs and handing England a 3-0 clean sweep in their three-match ODI series.  

England player's reaction to Dean's dismissal

England player Alex Hales took on his teammate Sam Billings after the latter questioned Deepti's tactic in the third ODI. Billings took to his official Twitter handle after the match to question the way Charlie was dismissed by Deepti. He wrote that the dismissal could be well within the laws but definitely not in the spirit of the game. However, it was Billings' teammate Alex Hales who dropped a comment correcting him by saying that it shouldn't be difficult for the non-striker to stay in their crease until the ball has left the hand. 

Meanwhile, England great James Anderson backed Billings' comment claiming that Deepti had no intention of bowling the ball. Billings shared a picture of Deepti, where the Indian all-rounder can be seen looking at Charlie in delivery stride. Here's what England cricketers said about Deepti running out Charlie in the third ODI at Lord's. 

Indian cricketers debunk 'spirit of game' debate

The incident sparked a major controversy on social media with several people from the cricketing fraternity debating whether Deepti's tactic was against the 'spirit of the game.' England cricketers, including the likes of Nasser Hussain, James Anderson, Stuart Broad, and Sam Billings criticised Deepti for her strategy, calling it an absurd way to win a game of cricket. However, Indian cricketers such as Virender Sehwag, Robin Uthappa, and Ravichandran Ashwin came out in Deepti's support as they debunked England's 'spirit of cricket' debate. 

Sehwag slammed England cricketers for creating unnecessary controversy over the mode of dismissal. "Funny to see so many English guys being poor losers. #Runout," Sehwag posted on Twitter along with a picture of the England flag with a text that read, "Invent a game, forget its rules." Sehwag also shared an excerpt of Marylebone Cricket Club's (MCC) Law 41.16.1, which clearly states that what Deepti did was well within the rules of the game.        

India vs England, 3rd ODI

As far as the match is concerned, India women were bowled out for 169 runs after being sent to bat first. Goswami in her last game for India was dismissed for a duck. Smriti Mandhana (50), Deepti Sharma (68), and Pooja Vastrakar (22) were the only players from the India team who reached the double-digit mark. Kate Cross picked a four-wicket haul in the game, while Freya Kemp scalped two wickets. 

Indian players bowled England out for 153 runs to win the game by 16 runs. Charlie Dean was the only batter who put up a significant score for England with her 47 off 80 balls. Amy Jones and Emma Lamb also contributed with scores of 28 and 21 runs, respectively. Renuka Singh picked a four-wicket haul for India, while Jhulan Goswami and Rajeshwari Gayakwad each picked two wickets to their names. 

Image: Twitter