Ex-England Pacer Reignites 'Ball Change' Row During Lord's Test: 'Rugby...'

Former England cricket team fast bowler Stuart Broad reignited the 'ball change' controversy with a hilarious comment during Day 4 of the third Test match between India and England at Lord's on Sunday. Broad spoke about the quality of the Dukes ball used in the Test series and said that he would play 'rugby' with one of the rejected balls. The ball had to be changed on multiple occasions during the course of the Test match as it kept losing its shape. During a discussion on Sky Sports, Broad examined the ball carefully and said that it was out of shape and not fit for play in his opinion.

"Well, I'm outnumbered with three batters and one bowler. I would play rugby with that. I'd be rolling that to the umpire and it would sort of go, bonk, bonk, bonk. I mean, the reason it's out of shape is because it's soft and I can squeeze that. I can squeeze that even more out of shape," he said.

Broad further explained that such a ball is ineffective for both batters as well as bowlers.

"It gets a bit of an ugly shape on the top. When that's hitting the pitch and the surface, it's just dying on the surface. It's not going to react off the surface. You need the harness of the seam to grip and move... even to be able to play a lovely cover drive and hit the ball for four."

"It's frustrating for a batter when you hit it through the covers... it rolls for two or three when it should've gone for four. First 10 years of my career, I can't remember changing a ball ever. It's a new thing. Maybe the ball quality, in my opinion. Yes," he added.

Coming to the match, a spell of terror by pacer Brydon Carse and a last-minute 'Ben Stokes miracle' put India at a huge psychological and statistical disadvantage as the hosts ended the day four in a severly disadvantaged spot at 58/4 while chasing 193 runs during the third Test.

(With PTI inputs)

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