Saliva ban lifted for upcoming IPL: reports

BOWLERS will be allowed to apply saliva to balls in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League, local media said on Thursday.

The use of saliva to shine one side of the old ball and keep the other rough helps fast bowlers get the leather ball to swing late.

The T20 competition barred the practice after it was banned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) as a precautionary measure during the pandemic.

But on Thursday, reports said the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had lifted the ban for the latest IPL season starting Saturday after a majority of team captains agreed on the move.

"The saliva ban has been lifted. Majority of captains were in favour of the move," a top BCCI official told the Press Trust of India news agency.

The Indian Express newspaper also quoted an unnamed BCCI official as saying: "This was the BCCI’s domestic tournament and so we are not bound by ICC's guidelines here."

India pace spearhead Mohammed Shami recently made an appeal to allow the use of saliva in the game's 50-over format.

"We are trying to reverse, but you are not getting the use of saliva into the game," Shami told reporters in Dubai during the Champions Trophy.

"We are constantly appealing to allow the use of saliva and it will be interesting with the reverse swing."

(With inputs from AFP)