On Saturday, Sunil Gavaskar criticised England for using a 92-year-old strategy against an injured Rishabh Pant in the third Test at Lord’s. He urged Sourav Ganguly, chairman of the ICC Men’s Cricket Committee, to review the rule.

England employed the short-ball strategy on Day 3 to curb India’s scoring, with 60% of their deliveries being short. Ben Stokes set six fielders on the leg side to target Pant, who had injured his left hand and needed medical attention. After Pant was struck by Stokes’s short deliveries, Gavaskar condemned the unsportsmanlike tactic, which dates back to the 1932-33 Ashes, where England used bodyline bowling to target Bradman, exploiting the lack of protective gear.

“56% of the balls bowled were short, with four fielders positioned on the boundary. To me, that’s not cricket. When the West Indies bowled short, they introduced a rule limiting it to just two bouncers per over. That was to curb the West Indies’ strength,” he said.

“Now we’re seeing bouncers being bowled. Just look at the field setup. This isn’t cricket. There should never be more than six fielders on the leg side. If Sourav Ganguly, the chairman of the ICC Men’s Cricket Committee, is observing this, I call on him to ensure that, in the future, no more than six fielders are permitted on the leg side,” he added.

In the match, KL Rahul scored a century, and Ravindra Jadeja followed with a third consecutive half-century, bringing India level with England’s first-innings total of 387. India seemed to be in command when Rahul and Pant (74) formed a solid fourth-wicket partnership of 141 runs. However, both were dismissed.

England faced just one over in their second innings on Day 3.