BCCI circulates MCC proposals that could sideline bowlers for entire matches over deliberate no-balls
The Board of Control for Cricket in India has distributed a set of recently proposed changes from the Marylebone Cricket Club to all state associations that would see bowlers suspended for an entire match if adjudged to have delivered deliberate front-foot no-balls or non-landing balls. The directive, circulated by the BCCI, reflects the MCC’s latest recommendations on those specific modes of illegal delivery.
The revisions were mooted by the Marylebone Cricket Club in recent discussions and have now been passed on by the BCCI to state-level administrators for their consideration. The material circulated outlines penalties tied to two categories of illegal bowling — deliberate front-foot no-balls and non-landing balls — and specifies that a finding of deliberateness in either case could carry a sanction of a full-match ban. The move was publicised on 2026-07-21, with the BCCI confirming the circulation among all state associations.
Under the proposals, deliberate front-foot no-balls would attract the most severe on-field disciplinary response, with the bowler facing exclusion from the remainder of the match if umpires determine intent. The same maximum sanction is attached to deliveries described as non-landing balls when officials deem them deliberate. The wording circulated by the BCCI mirrors the MCC’s phrasing regarding those two categories and the potential penalty of an entire-match suspension.
The BCCI’s communication to state associations does not, in itself, constitute implementation; it denotes transmission of the MCC’s proposed amendments to stakeholders within India’s domestic structure. The document emphasises the distinction between inadvertent overstepping or non-landing deliveries and those judged to be deliberate, linking the heightened penalty specifically to a finding of intent. The MCC’s role in proposing the change positions it as a source of the updated regulatory language rather than the enforcing authority within Indian cricket.
State associations now have the circulated text for review and any subsequent discussion or decisions will rest with the appropriate governance processes within the BCCI and the domestic bodies. The correspondence makes clear that the penalty for deliberate front-foot no-balls and non-landing balls, as framed by the MCC, is the prospect of a full-match suspension for the bowler.
The BCCI’s distribution of the MCC’s proposals to all state associations marks the next procedural step in considering those amendments at the domestic level. Any formal adoption or modification would be determined through the established channels within Indian cricket administration.
