ICC announces change in the Super Over rules to decide matches

The International Cricket Council (ICC), on Monday, has announced that the Super Over will be retained as a way to decide results at ICC events. 

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Change in the old rule

In group stages, if the Super Over is tied then the match will be tied. In Semi-Finals and Finals, the super over will continue till one team scores more runs than another team. It keeps in mind the basic principle of scoring more runs than the opponent to win. The rule change comes at the back of a bizarre end to the recently concluded men's World Cup, where England beat New Zealand in the finals courtesy of having scored more boundaries. 

The previous rule stated that if at the end of a Super Over, the match is tied, then the team that has hit the most boundaries in the main match and Super Over wins. If even after that, the score is tied, then the team whose batsmen have scored more boundaries in the main match only, will be declared the winner. However, still, if the match is tied, then the team with the higher scoring delivery shall be the winner.

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A press release by the Council stated, "Following on from a recommendation from the ICC Cricket Committee, the Chief Executives’ Committee agreed that use of the Super Over as a way to decide results at ICC events will be retained. Both the Cricket Committee and CEC agreed it was an exciting and engaging conclusion to the game and will remain in place covering all games at both ODI and T20I World Cups. In group stages, if the Super Over is tied the match will be tied. In Semi-Finals and Finals, there is one change to the Super Over-regulation in keeping with the basic principle of scoring more runs than the opponent to win, the Super Over will be repeated until one team has more runs than the other."

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Multiple announcements

The Council also announced that the prize money for the ICC women's events will be increased by $2.6 million. The Council stated that the rise in revenue is proportional to the rise in the revenue generated by the sport. The Council also announced that Zimbabwe and Nepal have been readmitted as members of the Council. The former had been suspended after the country’s cricket board, Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC), was unable to keep out the government interference with the board's administration. 

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