Misplaced Boundary Marking Sparks Fiery Debate About Validity of Suryakumar Yadav's Match-Winning Catch vs South Africa in T20 WC Final

Top angle of SKY's catch to dismiss Miller, which showcase the white lines (X)

No big occasion is rid of controversy. And now, the latest one that has gotten the internet raging surrounds the T20 World Cup final: particularly surrounding Suryakumar Yadav’s match-winning catch.

The 2024 World Cup final was a whirlwind affair, with momentum swinging around to both sides consistently throughout the match.

But, after a counterpunch from South Africa in the second inning, powered by Heinrich Klaasen, it all boiled down to the last over.

In a pressure cooker situation, Miller launched a full toss from Hardik Pandya in the final over as South Africa needed 16 runs to win off six. The ball seemed headed over the boundary cushions at long-off but Suryakumar ran across and pulled off a superb catch and as he realised the momentum was pushing him out of the field of play, he lobbed the ball back, recovered his balance, leapt back and completed the catch.

Miller was the last specialist batter in South Africa’s batting order and his exit all but confirmed India’s win.

Now, what has set doubters and spectators alike online has been the placement of the boundary line, which seemingly appears to have been tampered with as the white residue from the rope wedges are visible, before the actual ropes, where SKY caught the ball.

This sparked debated regarding whether SKY’s catch would be deemed valid as out or rather a six, which in fact would have turned the tide of the chase of South Africa.

But, finally clarification has been provided by the likes of cricket statistician Rajneesh Gupta, who cleared the air about whether or not the ball cleared the boundary, with a detailed explanation on X.

The short and sweet explanation behind the phenomenon was that the white line was merely a reflection of the entire pitch being adjusted prior to the match.

One way to distinguish between whether it was tampered with or not, was to witness that the white line was visible consistently throughout the field too, meaning that it wasn’t merely that one spot which was tampered, but rather the entire boundary line being readjusted, which is common practice in cricket.

India were involved in a thriller of a match against the mighty Proteas, both undefeated teams in the tournament, as the Virat Kohli-anchored batting order put up a historic total of 176 in their outing, the highest total set in an ICC T20 World Cup Final.After that, it was time for India’s finest with the ball to shine.

And shine they did, when the moment called for it, as the likes of Hardik Pandya and the ever-imminent Jasprit Bumrah delivered a masterclass in death bowling to seal a nail-biting 7-run win over the Proteas, to clinch the coveted T20 WC trophy.

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