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Rules of the
Hong Kong Cricket Association
Competitions
2003-04
General
1. Except as specified in the playing conditions, the Laws of Cricket
(Code 2000)
shall apply.
Fixtures
2.
The schedule of fixtures for League and Cup matches shall be published
by the
HKCA Office after League & Cup Committee (LCMC) approval. Any changes
to
such fixtures must be approved by the Match & Disciplinary Committee
(MDC).
Postponement
of Matches
3.
a) Postponements of competition matches and changes of venue will
not be
normally permitted, and requests for blank dates and other
particular
arrangements must be made before the season commences except
as provided
for in the rules for knock-out competitions. Player(s) availability
will not be
considered good reason to postpone or change any fixture. In
exceptional
circumstances, requests may be made to the Match And Disciplinary
Committee (MDC) whose decision shall be final.
Match
Result
4.
a) If any League match is adversely affected by weather or ground
conditions to
the extent that a result cannot be achieved, the points
for that game shall be
shared equally between the teams.
b) In the event of any team being unable to raise a side,
a walkover shall be
awarded to the opposition with 'win' points earned. A side
shall be of no less
than seven players.
Ground, Weather and Light
5. Before the Toss has taken place, the decision with
regard to the fitness of the
ground will rest with the authority responsible for the maintenance
of the ground,
or in the absence of the ground authority, Umpires appointed by HKCA,
or in
their absence, the team captains After the toss has taken place, the
Umpires
appointed by the HKCA or, in their absence, the Captains shall be the
sole judges
of conditions being fit for play. If both Captains cannot agree on
whether to play,
both teams shall remain at the ground for one hour after the scheduled
start time
at which time the home Captain shall decide whether or not play is
to commence.
Disputes
6. All disputes during a match shall be determined by
the Umpires appointed by
HKCA or in their absence, by the team captains. If they disagree the
existing state
of affairs shall continue. Rulings given by the MDC on any disputes
brought
before them shall be final.
Match And Disciplinary Committee (MDC)
7.
The HKCA Match Disciplinary Committee shall be elected annually by
the HKCA
League & Cup Committee and shall consist of four members elected
by the
LCMC. This committee shall be the authority within the HKCA (subject
to the
authority of the Executive Committee) for all decisions regarding the
playing of an
HKCA league match, cup fixture, Summer 8's or representative
match or tour. The
MDC is empowered to make retrospective decisions on any of the above
and
impose whatever sanctions it deems appropriate.
(See: HKCA MDC Charter & Procedures)
Registration and Eligibility of Players
8. a) Individual membership of the HKCA is available
in the following categories:
Life Member
Ordinary Member
Junior Member
b) Prior to the start of the league season, each team Is required to
register a
minimum of 11 players and pay the requisite Individual membership and
team
fees. All players are to complete and submit the HKCA Registration
Form
before playing.
c) Should the said individual and team membership fees not be paid prior
to the
commencement of the season, consideration will be given to removing the
team
from competitions for the current season. Any matches played prior to
payment of the membership fee may be declared null and void. The MDC
may
award full points to the non-offending team.
d) Playing a non-registered player may result in the deduction of league
points.
However, an individual may play a maximum of two games in each HKCA
League without registering. Such a player is required to register as
a HKCA
member before his third game in any one League.
e) Non-members of the HKCA shall not play for an Association side in
representative games. It Is the responsibility of the Chairman of Selectors
to
ensure that all representative players are members of the HKCA.
Transfer of Players
9. A player
shall not, without the prior permission of the MDC, play for more
than
one team in the same competition. Applications for transfer must be
submitted in
writing to the Chairman of the MDC at least 72 hours before the transfer
is
required to take effect. This must be accompanied by the written approval
of the
Captain of the player's previous team. Breaches of this rule will
be referred to the MDC who may impose appropriate sanctions including,
the deduction of
league
points or removal of the offending team from the Cup competition.
Junior Pool Players
10. The HKCA Office shall maintain a 'Junior Pool Players'
list including contact
details. These players are permitted to represent any team who may
be short of
players at short notice, subject to availability. These players are
exempt from
Rule 9, above. However, any junior player who plays four times for
the same side
in one season will be considered a permanent member of that team for
the
purposes of that Rule.
The Ball
11. Home teams are to supply identical, HKCA approved
match balls and one new
ball shall be used for each innings. The LCMC will decide which balls
are to be
used for HKCA competitions. Non-approved balls are not to be used and
breaches
of this rule shall be dealt with by the MDC who may impose penalties,
including
the deduction of points.
Overs and Fielding
12. a) Should a bowler become incapacitated, another
bowler may complete the over.
A part of an over counts as a complete over for the purpose of calculating
how
many overs a bowler has bowled in matches where bowlers are subject
to restrictions on the number of overs they may bowl. A part of an
over
does not
count as a complete over for any other purposes (eg total number of
overs bowled by the team; statistical purposes).
b) It shall be the responsibility of the Captain of the fielding side
to ensure that no
bowler exceeds the permitted number of overs.
c) All teams are required to bowl at an average rate of 17 overs per
hour. In the
event of a slower over rate without good cause, Umpires and/or Captains
are to report this to the MDC for appropriate action. An unnecessarily
slow
over rate
may result in the deduction of points.
d) At no time are more than 5 fielders permitted to field on the leg
side during a
match.
Match Result Cards
13. a) A Match Result Card for each match shall be submitted
to the HKCA office by
the winning team and, in the event of a tie, the home team. These result
cards
shall be sent by fax to the HKCA office: Fax 2577 8486.
b) The full names of all players taking part in a match must be entered
on the
match result card. This includes any match started but abandoned as No
Result
due to adverse weather conditions. Such a match counts as a game for
registration purposes. In matches where a team plays less than 11
men,
the
word "ABSENT " shall be written on the match results card
in the
corresponding location.
c) In a match started but abandoned as No Result due to adverse weather
conditions, players' individual batting, bowling and fielding figures
count
towards their season's averages, and, if applicable, should be
shown on the
Match Result Card.
d) Failure to submit a Result Card by noon on the first working day after
a game.
The HKCA office will bring breaches of this rule to the attention of
the MDC
who may deduct League points.
Dangerous & Unfair
Bowling (Law 42 - 2000 Code) The Bowling of Fast, Short Pitched Balls
14. a) Bowling fast, short pitched balls is dangerous
and unfair if the umpire at the
bowler's end considers that by their repetition and taking into
account their
length, height and direction they are likely to inflict physical injury
on the
striker, irrespective of the protective equipment he may be wearing.
The
relative skill of the striker shall be taken into consideration.
b) Any delivery which, after pitching, passes or would have passed
over head
height of the striker standing upright at the crease, although not
threatening
physical injury, is unfair and shall be considered as part of the repetition
sequence in (a) above. The [either] umpire shall call and signal No
ball for each
such delivery.
c) A bowler shall be allowed to bowl one fast, short-pitched delivery
per over (not
being a Wide or a No Ball.) A fast, short-pitched delivery is defined
as a ball
that passes or would have passed above the shoulder height of the striker
standing upright at the crease, but not clearly above the batsman's
head. In the
event of the bowler bowling more than one fast, short-pitched delivery
in an
over, the umpire shall call and signal No Ball. The penalty shall be
one run for
the No Ball, plus any runs scored from the delivery. This regulation
is not a
substitute for Law 42.6 which umpires may apply at any time and applies
to all
HKCA one-day matches.
The Bowling of High Full Pitched Balls
15. a) Any
delivery, other than a slow paced one, which passes or would have
passed
on the full above waist height of the striker standing upright at the
crease is to be deemed dangerous and unfair, whether or not it is
likely to inflict
physical
injury on the striker. The [either] umpire shall call and signal No
ball for each
such delivery.
b) A slow delivery, which passes or would have passed on the full above
shoulder
height of the striker standing upright at the crease is to be considered
dangerous and unfair, whether or not it is likely to inflict physical
injury on the
striker. The [either] umpire shall call and signal No ball for each
such delivery.
Umpires
16.
a) Whenever possible, the HKCA will appoint match officials. At all
other times, the appointment of umpires is the responsibility
of the
batting side. Captains are to be circumspect in their choice of player
umpires.
Any unofficial, non-playing umpire(s) may only stand with prior approval
of
both captains.
b) All teams are to ensure that they have at least two representatives
'qualified' as umpires. These representatives are to be registered
with the HKCA before
the
start of the season. Any changes to these nominations during the
season must
be notified in writing.
c) The MDC, in consultation with the HKACUS, shall issue guidelines
on umpire
qualification. The MDC is the sole arbiter in matters of umpiring
'qualification'.
Saturday
League Rules
Hours of
Play
1. Matches will
commence at 1315 hrs, or earlier if both Captains agree, except as
in
Rules 3 and 8 below. Matches will be of one innings per team. Each
team shall
receive a maximum of 35 overs.
Umpires
2. In the absence
of HKCA appointed umpires, the batting side Captain is to
nominate the umpires during each innings. It is the responsibility
of the Captains
to ensure that his nominees are familiar with the Laws of Cricket
and the rules of
the competition. The Captain may be held responsible by the MDC
in any cases of
unfair conduct or negligence.
Periods
of Play & Intervals
3. 1315 - 1530 First
Innings
1530 - 1540 Interval
1540 - 1755 Second Innings
4. a) The team fielding
first shall bowl 35 overs, or complete the over which is in
progress at 1530 hrs if this arises first, unless it dismisses
its opponents in fewer
than 35 overs.
b) The team batting second shall be limited to the same
number of overs, unless
the team batting first is all out in fewer than 35 overs,
in which case the team
batting second shall have the opportunity of batting for
the full 35 overs.
c) Declarations are not permitted.
d) The first innings shall consist of 35 overs unless otherwise
agreed before the
toss as per Para. 5 (a) below. If, without good cause,
the bowling side fails to
complete 35 overs within the scheduled time, the innings
shall be extended
until 35 overs are completed and the second innings restricted
to the number of
overs completed at the scheduled time. The over in progress
at the scheduled
time shall count as a completed over.
e) There will be a ten minute interval between innings.
f) If the team fielding second fails to bowl Its required number of overs
without
good cause by 1755hrs, the facts are to be reported to the MDC.
g) Captains shall agree before the match on the clock or watch to be
followed
during the match.
h) No bowler may bowl more than 10 overs.
Restricted
Matches
5. In order
to achieve a result in a match delayed or interrupted by adverse
conditions of weather, ground, light or other good
cause beyond the teams' control, the following
procedures apply:
a) If the first innings has not been started or is
interrupted on one or more
occasions, two overs shall be deducted from the total
number of overs
originally due to be bowled (normally 70) for every
six minutes lost and the
revised number of overs shall be shared equally between
the two teams.
b) The second innings shall consist of the same number
of overs as the first,
subject to reduction of one over for every three
minutes lost due to any similar
delay or interruption, subject always to Rule 4b).
If the second innings is of
fewer overs than the first for any reason other than
that of a win / loss having
already been achieved, the result shall be determined
by the net run rates.
Note: The intention of Rule 3 is to encourage games
to be played where both
Captains agree there is a prospect of play. Thus,
a minimum 10 overs per side
game could commence as late as 1625 hrs.
The Result
6. a) A
result is achieved after both teams have completed their innings
under Rule 2
and/or Rule 3. The team scoring the higher number
of runs shall be the winner.
b) In the event of bad weather preventing the
completion of the second innings,
the team with the higher net run rate shall be
the winner. Net run rate is to be
calculated by total runs scored divided by total
legitimate balls bowled.
If 10 or more overs have been bowled, the team
with the higher run rate shall
be deemed the winner, and bonus points allocated
as in Rule 6 below.
c) In the event of a Tie, wickets taken are not
to be taken into account except for
bonus points purposes.
Points
7. Points
for matches will be awarded as follows:
a) 12 points for WIN (bonus points do not apply)
b) 4 points for a TIE (plus bonus points)
c) 0 points for a LOSS (plus bonus points)
d) Matches not started:
i) No Result/Match Abandoned – 6 points each.
ii)Walkover – 12 points to opposition.
e) Matches not started because the ground is
unavailable will be rescheduled at a
later date, if at all possible.
Bonus Points
8. Bonus
points will be awarded to the losing team, or both teams in a tied
match, as
follows:
a) one batting point for 125, 150 and 175
runs
b) one bowling point for 3 and 6 with a
further bowling point if the opponents
are "all out".
League Champions
9. At the
conclusion of the season, if the top teams have the same number of
points,
the following will be the order of preference
for deciding the League Champions:
a) Team with most wins
b) Team with fewest lost matches
c) Team with most bonus points
Should all the above be identical Should
all the above be identical the
Championship will be awarded to the
winners of the League match between
the relevant teams. If there was no
result in that match a play-off game
will be
arranged, if possible. Otherwise, the
Championship will be shared.
Saturday Morning Matches
10. Under normal
circumstances the League & Cup Committee will
not allow League
matches to be played on Saturday mornings. However, the MDC may, for
special
reasons and / or under exceptional circumstances, allow / order matches
to be
played on Saturday mornings. If authorised, such matches will be played
under the
Saturday League Rules with the following exceptions:
a) Matches are to commence at 0830 hrs.
b) The team fielding first shall bowl 35 overs or complete the over which
is in
progress at 1045 hrs if that arises first.
c) The team fielding second shall bowl 35 overs or be limited to the
same number
of overs as the team bowling first, except that the last over of the
match will be
the over in progress at 1310 hrs.
d) Teams will be allowed 35 overs each for batting, if required, and
will be
penalised for slow bowling in the same manner as Saturday afternoon matches
under Rule 2.
Saturday Cup/Plate
Rules
Entrants
1. a) The Saturday
Cup Competition is open to all Saturday League teams. In
addition, the LCMC may invite ‘social' sides to enter and
may amend the Cup
format at its discretion.
b) The format of the Saturday Cup and Plate Competitions shall be decided
by the
League & Cup Committee.
c) Teams must notify the HKCA of the names of their players before
the draw is
made for the first round. No transfers or additions will be allowed
without the
prior approval of the MDC.
d) All players must have played at least one Saturday League match
during the
current season and be HKCA members. This rule may be waived for any ‘social' sides. However, the MDC shall be the sole judge of the
eligibility and/
or appropriateness of any players entering the competition under the ‘social' category.
e) Any team failing to submit its Cup squad before the published deadline
will be
required to ensure that all its players have played at least TWO Saturday
League games during the season before they are eligible to play in
the Cup and
have their inclusion pre-approved by the MDC.
Draw
2. The draw for
each separate round of matches will is made by the LCMC
Chairman (or his representative) and a minimum of three HKCA members
appointed by him.
Competition Conditions
3. a) The Saturday
Cup and Plate competitions will be on a straight knockout basis.
b) All matches are to commence at 1315 hrs or earlier if both
Captains agree and
will be of one innings for each team.
c) Teams losing first round matches will enter the Plate Competition.
d) Teams losing qualifying round matches will not be able to
enter the Plate
Competition.
e) Where possible, the MDC will reschedule a match abandoned
as No Result due
to inclement weather. Where this is not possible the match
will be decided by
the toss of a coin.
Playing Conditions & Intervals
4. Playing conditions and intervals will be the same as those for the
Saturday League,
except that:
a) A fielding circle, marked or notional, is to be observed 27.5
metres (30 yds) in
diameter from the bases of both centre stumps. A minimum of four fielders,
in
addition to the bowler and wicket keeper, must be within the circle
at the
moment of delivery throughout the game. Either umpire, upon seeing
a breach
of this condition, shall call and signal No ball.
Result
5. a) The team scoring the higher number of runs in the allocated
number of overs
will be deemed the winner.
b) In the event of tied scores, the team losing fewer wickets
will be the winner.
c) If both teams have scored the same number of runs and are all
out, but the
number of overs bowled is unequal, the winner will be the team
with the better
net run rate (total runs scored divided by total legitimate balls
bowled).
d) Where both teams have scored the same number of runs, lost the
same number
of wickets and bowled the same number of overs, the winner will
be the team
with the better run rate at the end of 20 overs and, if still identical,
at the end
of 10 overs.
e) If the team batting second has not received ten overs, the match
will be
abandoned as No Result, provided the team batting second is not
all out in
fewer than ten overs. If the match is abandoned, Rule 3 e) above
will apply.
Match Balls
6. The attention of Captains is drawn to Competition General Rule
11.
Match Expenses
7. In all rounds, match expenses (Including the provision of
match balls) are to be
equally shared between teams.
Players' Code of Conduct
All HKCA members, players and officials agree to take positive steps
to maintain the
high reputation of cricket and of the Hong Kong Cricket Association.
Players must
approach the game with a determined, winning attitude, i.e. play hard
but maintain
control.
1. Everyone on the field shall ensure that the match is conducted
within the Laws of
Cricket and the Spirit of the Game.
2. Any player
guilty of unacceptable behaviour is to reported to
the Match & Disciplinary Committee.
3. Examples of unacceptable behaviour:
• A player assaulting or attempting to assault an umpire,
another player, spectator or official.
• Abusing an umpire or disputing (as distinct from questioning) an umpire's
decision or reacting in an obviously provocative or disapproving manner
by
word or action either towards an umpire, his decision or generally following
an
umpire's decision.
• Use of crude or abusive language or engaging in conduct detrimental to
the
Spirit of the Game.
• Employing dramatic actions accompanying appeals or any actions or words
that may be construed a pressuring umpires.
• Abusing players on the field or making derogatory remarks about the
opposition. 'Sledging' is not condoned by the HKCA and shall
be interpreted as
contrary to the Laws of Cricket.
ANY BREACH
OF THIS CODE IS LIABLE TO ACTION BY THE MATCH & DISCIPLINARY
COMMITTEE AND MAY RESULT IN SUSPENSION OR TERMINATION
OF HKCA MEMBERSHIP.
The
Spirit of Cricket
Laws of
Cricket 2000 Code
Cricket
is a game that owes much of its unique appeal to the fact that it should
be played not only within its Laws but also within the Spirit of the
Game. Any action, which is seen to abuse this spirit, causes injury
to the game itself. The major responsibility for ensuring the spirit
of fair play rests with the captains.
1.
There are two Laws, which place the responsibility for the team's conduct
firmly on the captain.
Responsibility
of Captains (Law 1)
The
captains are responsible at all times for ensuring that play is conducted
within the Spirit of the Game as well as within the Laws.
Player's
Conduct (Law 42)
In
the event of a player failing to comply with instructions by an umpire,
or criticising by word or action the decisions of an umpire, or showing
dissent, or generally behaving in a manner which might bring the game
into disrepute, the umpire concerned shall in the first place report
the matter to the other umpire and to the player's captain, and instruct
the latter to take action.
2.
Fair and Unfair Play (Laws 3 & 42)
According
to the Laws the umpires are the sole judges of fair and unfair play.
The umpires may intervene at any time and it is the responsibility
of the captain to take action where required.
3.
The umpires are authorised to intervene in cases of:
• Time
wasting
• Damaging the pitch
• Dangerous or unfair bowling
• Tampering with the ball
• Any other action that they consider unfair
4. The
Spirit of the Game involves RESPECT for:
• Your
opponents
• Your own captain and team
• The role of the umpires
• The game's traditional values
5.
It is against the Spirit of the Game:
• To
dispute an umpire's decision by word, action or gesture
• To direct abusive language towards an opponent or umpire
• To indulge in cheating or any sharp practice, for instance:
(a) to appeal knowing that the batsman is not out
(b) to advance towards an umpire in an aggressive manner when appealing
(c) to seek to distract an opponent either verbally or by harassment with persistent
clapping or unnecessary noise under the guise of enthusiasm and motivation
of one's own side
6.
Violence
There
is no place for any act of violence on the field of play.
7.
Players
Captains
and umpires together set the tone for the conduct of a cricket match.
Every player is expected to make an important contribution to this. |
