March 8, 2205 - Former New Zealand fast bowler Tim Southee and former South African pacer Vernon Philander have supported Indian bowler Mohammad Shami's appeal to the ICC to lift the ban on saliva usage, allowing fast bowlers to achieve reverse swing during matches. Shami had made this appeal on March 6, after India’s victory over Australia in the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy tournament.

"That was a rule brought around Covid with the virus going around the world, but I think as a bowler, you want to have a slight advantage," Southee said to a media house. "We see the game going the way it's going and seeing sides score 362 and more often than not over 300 in this format. I think there needs to be something in the bowlers' favour, and whether that's a little bit of saliva, then yeah, I don't see why they couldn't afford to get that back in."

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the ICC had imposed a ban on the use of saliva on the ball, while, bowlers believe the use of saliva is essential for reverse swing.

“We are trying to reverse, but you are not getting the use of saliva into the game,” Shami had told media persons in Dubai.

When the ball is 20-25 overs old, it can be made to reverse swing. In this process, the shine needs to be maintained on one side of the ball. To do this, bowlers use saliva to shine the ball. Reverse swing is possible only when one side of the ball is old and rough, while the other side still has shine.

In reverse swing, fast bowlers can make the ball swing out while bowling an in-swing action. Similarly, they can surprise the batsman by delivering an in-swing ball while using an out-swing action.

In One Day and T20 formats, the ball gets old over time, and there are certain moments when the use of saliva could make a significant difference, bowlers believe.

Source: Media Reports