During the England versus West Indies cricket match, England’s Dom Sibley admitted that he used his saliva to polish the ball when Dom Bess was preparing to bowl.
The on-field umpires, Michael Gough and Richard Illingworth examined the ball together after Sibley’s announcement.
The umpires used a disinfectant wipe to rub down the polish side of the ball before giving it back to Bess.
Due to COVID-19, the ICC revised their guidelines.
Only sweat is allowed to polish the balls, not the player’s saliva.
Saliva is considered to be a potential carrier of the virus and can put the players at tremendous risk if the practice of using saliva to polish the ball continued.
The umpires have been asked to display leniency to players when they notice them using their saliva.
However, they can issue 2 official warnings before docking the offending team 5 runs.