Match referee Andy Pycroft has investigated a bizarre incident in which Indian spinner Ravi Jadeja rubbed a mystery substance into his spinning finger during the opening day of the first Test in Nagpur.
Reports from India claim Pycroft queried Jadeja and India captain Rohit Sharma, and watched a film of the incident after play, but no charges were laid.
Footage on social media shows Jadeja wiping a substance off the back of fast bowler Mohammed Siraj’s hand, before the left-armer vigorously rubbed it into his left index finger.
Reports claimed Indian team management told Pycroft that Jadeja was applying pain relief cream, although there was no sign of medical staff on the field.
Spinners often suffer calluses from gripping the seam and flicking the ball out as they bowl, particularly if they have had a long layoff. It was Jadeja’s first Test since July 2022 following a knee injury.
However, there was speculation on social media alleging the cream may have been similar to that used by footballers in some codes to improve their grip on the ball.
Jadeja was the best bowler on a dominant first day for India, claiming 5-47 as Australia were bowled out for 177. India went to stumps at 1-77 in reply.
The incident took place when Australia were 5-120, with Jadeja having already dismissed Marnus Labuschagne, Matt Renshaw and Steve Smith.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan tweeted: “What is it he is putting on his spinning finger? Never ever seen this”. Australia’s former captain Tim Paine replied “interesting”, when questioned about it on Twitter.
Indian spinner Ravi Jadeja rubbed a mystery substance into his spinning finger during the opening day of the first Test in Nagpur.Credit:Nine
Another former captain, Michael Clarke, claimed Jadeja did not do anything untoward but believes he should not have applied the cream with ball in hand.
“He’s bowling so much, so he’s probably got a blister or cut on that finger. What he should have done there, he should have given the ball to the umpire and stood in front of the umpire while he was putting it on his finger,” Clarke said on the Big Sports Breakfast.
Ravindra Jadeja, right, celebrates with captain Rohit Sharma after taking the wicket of Todd Murphy.Credit:AP
“I don’t look at that and think it’s a thing. I just wish he didn’t have the ball in his hand.
Faf du Plessis addresses the media in 2016.Credit:Getty
“If he chucks the ball to the umpire and does that, I don’t think there’s any comment made about that. It’s just the perception.
“I don’t think there’s anything to it. I could be 100 per cent wrong.”
While there is nothing to show Jadeja directly applying the substance to the ball, there are questions about whether it could be transferred from his finger as he puts the ball into his hand to bowl.
Law 42.3 prevents players from rubbing the ball on the ground, interfering with its seam or surface, or using any implement that can alter the condition of the ball to gain an unfair advantage.
It is a law that has been widely flouted, as fielding teams attempt to make the ball swing. Tony Greig claimed cold sore cream and vaseline were used to keep one side of the ball shiny when he started playing county cricket in the 1960s.
Former England opening batter Marcus Trescothick confirmed in his autobiography that England’s defining 2005 Ashes victory was aided by peppermint sweets.
“It had been common knowledge in county cricket for some time that certain sweets produced saliva which, when applied to the ball for cleaning purposes, enabled it to keep its shine for longer and therefore its swing,” he wrote.
Former South Africa captain Faf du Plessis was found guilty of ball-tampering twice, in 2013 for rubbing the ball on a zip to scratch it, and in 2016 in Hobart for “applying saliva and residue from a mint or sweet”.
Roughing up one side of the ball to create reverse swing is now more in vogue, which was highlighted by the disastrous ball-tampering incident by Australia in South Africa five years ago, when Cameron Bancroft was caught with sandpaper on the field.
Bancroft was subsequently suspended for nine months. Then captain Steve Smith and vice-captain David Warner were each suspended for a year.
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