After making several changes to ODIs and Tests, ICC updates playing conditions in men’s T20Is - Details inside

ICC - the cricket’s apex body, has been on a rule-changing spree lately. After making several changes to the playing conditions in men’s ODIs and Tests, they have now approved modifications in the shortest format – T20Is. In the latest update, the ICC has tweaked powerplay rules in shortened men’s T20Is, effective from July 2025. In case of a rain-hit T20I game, where there is a reduction in overs, the length of the powerplay will be rounded off to the nearest ball instead of to the nearest over.

So, what does this mean? According to the revised rules, as approved by the ICC, an innings reduced to eight overs per side, for example, will now have 2.2 overs of powerplay instead of just two or three, where only two men will be allowed outside of the 30-yard circle. Similarly, in a nine-over game, each inning will have 2.4 overs of powerplay, keeping the proportion closer to 30%.

"This table has been used in the T20 Blast in England for many years, where ending a powerplay midway through an over has caused no difficulty for players or officials," the ICC told its members, per an ESPNcricinfo report.

"It has now been accepted by the ICC Men's Cricket Committee as the preferred method moving forward," it continued. “In the eight-over example above, the umpire will make the signal after two balls of the third over, at which point three further fielders are able to drop back from within the circle.”

More changes to the playing conditions

Besides tweaking the powerplay rules in the men’s T20Is, the ICC approved an array of changes in the playing conditions across the remaining two formats.

The ICC introduced the stop-clock rule in Test cricket to cut down the slow-over rate drama, a bigger issue for Test-playing nations. Under this rule, the fielding side must start an over within 60 seconds of the previous one ending. In case of a foul, the on-field umpires shall warn the bowling team twice but will impose a five-run penalty the third time onwards. The warnings shall be reset to zero after the completion of 80 overs each time in an inning.

On the other hand, the ICC has also updated the playing conditions surrounding the usage of saliva on the cricket ball. In the revised update, it is no longer mandatory for the on-field umpires to change the ball after finding anyone using saliva on it. Should it not alter the ball’s condition drastically, the umpires shall direct the teams to continue playing with the same ball.