World Cup: ICC finally responds to overthrow incident in final match

England were awarded six runs after the overthrow raced towards the boundary.

The International Cricket Council, the governing body of the sport, finally responded to the overthrow controversy during the final match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 between England and New Zealand.

An overthrow during England's chase had resulted in six runs coming off a delivery after the fielder threw the ball at the stumps while the batsmen were taking their second run. The ball hit one of the batsmen and went all the way to the boundary rope. The on-field umpires awarded England six runs off that delivery -- two runs that the batsmen ran between the wickets, and four overthrows.

However, according to ICC rules, only five runs should have been given and not six. The rules state that an extra run should have been given only when the batsmen had crossed each other when the fielder threw the ball. The English batsmen hadn't crossed.

Now, the ICC has responded, stating that it was against its policy to react on decisions taken by umpires.

"The umpires take decisions on the field with their interpretation of the rules and we don't comment on any decisions as a matter of policy," an ICC spokesperson was quoted as saying by foxsports.com.au.

Former five-time ICC umpire of the year and member of the MCC laws sub-committee, Simon Taufel has also since admitted the on-field officials got it wrong.

"It's a clear mistake ... it's an error of judgment," Taufel had said.

• ICC World Cup 2020