Ball-tampering incident in Indian domestic cricket

Jitendra Patil, a left-arm fast bowler from Maharashtra, has been charged with ball tampering in an Under-22 CK Nayudu Trophy match against Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday. This is the first time such an incident has occurred in Indian domestic cricket.

Harvinder Sodhi, the match referee, confirmed the incident, but said he was yet to take any action. "Since the umpires report came a bit late, I would only be taking a decision tomorrow [Thursday]," Sodhi told the Hindustan Times. "I have fixed a hearing for this on Thursday [the final day of the game]."

An official from the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association said there was no provision to immediately suspend the offending player or prevent him from bowling.

Patil was allegedly caught applying cream on the ball, four deliveries into Maharashtra's 39th over, on the third day of the game. As soon as it was noticed by the umpires, they ordered a ball change, and later awarded five penalty runs to Uttar Pradesh. As per the BCCI rules, the batsmen had a choice of seven balls to choose from, including a new one.