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Former ICC match referee Chris Broad has claimed that he was instructed to ”be lenient’ in order to avoid India an over-rate fine at one point during his time as a match official.
Former ICC match referee Chris Broad disclosed that he was instructed to “be lenient” in order to prevent India from incurring an over-rate fine during his time in office.
While speaking to ‘The Telegraph’, Broad did not specify when the incident occurred; however, he described the scene, stating that during one match, India were slow with their overs, so the team was supposed to be fined.
“India were three, four overs down at the end of a game, so it constituted a fine,” he said.
“I got a phone call saying, ‘be lenient, find some time because it’s India’. And it’s like, right, OK. So we had to find some time, brought it down below the threshold.”
“The very next game, exactly the same thing happened. He [Sourav Ganguly] didn’t listen to any of the hurry-ups and so I phoned and said, ‘what do you want me to do now?’ and I was told ‘just do him’,” he revealed.
The 68-year-old further said that he wanted to continue in the role; however, his contract was not renewed.
“I was very happy to carry on,” Broad remarked. “But for 20 years, I dodged a lot of bullets, both politically and physically. I look back and I think, ‘you know, 20 years is quite a long time to be doing that job’.”
He also discussed the Indian influence and financial aspects involved in the game while operating within a political environment.
“I think we were supported by Vince van der Bijl (ICC umpires manager) while he was in position because he came from a cricketing background, but once he left, the management became a lot weaker. India got all the money and have now taken over the ICC so in many ways,” he claimed.
“I’m pleased I’m not around because it’s a much more political position now than it ever has been.,” Chris Broad concluded.
Overall, Chris Broad remained in the role from 2003 until February 2024. During his 20 years, he oversaw 123 Test matches, 361 ODIs, and 138 T20Is.
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