England men’s cricket team captain Jos Buttler is dissatisfied with India’s choice to utilize Harshit Rana as a concussion substitute for all-rounder Shivam Dube in the fourth T20I, held at Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on Friday, January 31.
Dube, having been struck on the helmet by Jamie Overton in the final over of India’s innings, was substituted by Harshit for the match’s second half. Rana, who debuted in T20I for India on Friday, proceeded to take three wickets for 33 runs in his four-over spell, aiding the hosts in achieving a 15-run victory.
Buttler, similar to numerous fans, past legends, and game analysts, expressed discontent with India’s choice to substitute a batting all-rounder, who bowls medium pace, with a specialist bowler as a concussion replacement.
During the post-match press conference in Pune, Buttler told reporters that Rana cannot be considered a like-for-like substitute for Dube, and the English team does not concur with the Indian team management’s choice.
“It’s not a like-for-like replacement. We don’t agree with that. Either Shivam Dube has put on about 25 mph with the ball or Harshit’s really improved his batting. It’s part of the game, and we really should have gone on to win the match, but we disagree with the decision,” Buttler said.
According to the rule, “the ICC Match Referee should ordinarily approve a Concussion Replacement Request if the replacement is a like-for-like player whose inclusion will not excessively advantage his/her team for the remainder of the match.”
