Jos Buttler Took Diplomatic Stand On ‘Obstructing The Field’ Incident

There was an intriguing sample of the kind of bizarre events likely to crop up during the T20 World Cup. The warm-up games, while providing plenty of action, are also a teaser to how players may react to Mankading and even “obstructing the field” incidents. Jos Buttler, the England captain who was once the victim of a controversial Mankad run out by Ravi Ashwin in the IPL, was at the centre of the storm as Team England was subject to a clear case of obstruction when the bowler Mark Wood was prevented from going for a return catch by Matthew Wade putting a hand on his chest. Wicket-keeper Buttler saw the event differently. He said his team were just setting out on a very long tour of Australia that includes The Ashes and he didn’t want to have an early brush with the notorious Australian crowds with a fair quota of yobos, hecklers and downright racist punters. “They asked if I wanted to appeal and I said ‘no’. I’ve only just got to Australia so I thought just carry on with the game,” Buttler said. He took the diplomatic route out, but his example is unlikely to be followed by players in the T20 World Cup who will exploit every opportunity to win matches. After all, the debate over Mankading is yet to settle after the Deepti-Charlie event in the women’s T20 in England.