UAE was the first casualty of the ICC’s decision to impose a permanent ban on the use of saliva to polish the ball.
UAE’s Alisan Sharafu used saliva to shine the ball on Wednesday against Nepal in the 2nd ODI of the series. On-field umpires Vinay Jha and Durga Subedi awarded Nepal five penalty runs in line with the ruling that came into effect this September.
The ICC Cricket Committee headed by Anil Kumble had recommended that sweat and not any artificial substance should be used to shine the ball.
Nepal squeezed home by three wickets in a tight game to level the series at 1-1. The victory was orchestrated by Aarif Sheik and 16-year-old Gulshan Jha, who added 62 for the eighth wicket. While Jha made 37, Sheikh remained unbeaten on 33 to take Nepal home in their chase of 191. The 3-match ODI series is in 1-1 and the series decider will be played on Friday (18th November).