Leicestershire face relegation after 27-point deduction for pitch breach

Leicestershire are on the brink of relegation from Division One of the County Championship after being deducted 27 points for breaching pitch regulations in their victory over Glamorgan in August.

The points penalty imposed by the independent Cricket Discipline Panel (CDP) midway through their penultimate match of the season meant the Foxes have dropped to the bottom of the table.

In his interview with the Cricket Regulator before the tribunal hearing, Leicestershire's head groundsman Callum Lewin said there were "circumstances leading up to the game that were just out of my control".

They included an "unscheduled Bollywood filming event" taking place at Uptonsteel Grace Road four days before the start of the match, while Lewin also referenced the exceptionally hot weather in the build-up as another possible reason for the pitch being dry.

The pitch was rated as "poor" in the match referee's report.

Leicestershire's punishment consists of the loss of all 19 points earned in the win over Glamorgan, an extra eight-point penalty and a £5,000 fine. A further eight-point deduction has been suspended for a year.

They can appeal the sanction within 10 working days.

In a statement, the club said it "notes the Cricket Discipline Panel's decision" and was "reviewing its position and considering all available options".

If the Foxes fail to beat Hampshire in their ongoing home game, their return to Division Two will be confirmed.

But they face a tough task to do so after Hampshire closed day two on 255-3 in their second innings - a lead of 225.

Just above the relegation places, the survival chances of both Glamorgan and Essex have been increased by Leicestershire's loss of points.

The Foxes' battle to avoid the drop in their first season back in Division One after a 22-year exile had been boosted by the 42-run win over Glamorgan three weeks earlier.

Before that, they had won just one match on their top-flight return after winning promotion as Division Two title winners last season.

When Leicestershire beat Glamorgan on 23 August it was immediately clear they would be in for an anxious wait to discover if the way the pitch played would have consequences.

The match officials, led by referee Ian Ramage, asked for the ECB's pitch and grounds advisor Andy Mackay to carry out an inspection after the game concluded.

After the match, Glamorgan head coach Richard Dawson said conditions were "tough" for batters.

Leicestershire head coach Alfonso Thomas added the surface had been prepared in the same way as the pitch used against Yorkshire - a game the Foxes won by an innings and 39 runs in June - although he acknowledged it was "a bit drier than what we wanted" for the match against Glamorgan.

The starting point for punishment for a pitch rated as "poor" is a 16-point deduction and this was reduced to eight points at the tribunal because of several mitigating factors.

Among them were Leicestershire's "early admission that the pitch was substandard" and this being the "first rating of below average, poor or unfit" in the previous 24 months.

A section of the judgement read: "The tribunal also takes into account Leicestershire's full co-operation with the Cricket Regulator's investigation, the fact that there was no intention to deliberately create a pitch with uneven bounce and the extreme weather conditions which do amount to some mitigation. This was not a case of cheating."

Adam Whitty, BBC Radio Leicester

I doubt I am being controversial by saying the pitch against Glamorgan did not play as expected. There was uneven bounce from early in the match and players were regularly getting hit on the hands.

They went for a "mullet" - shorter grass at the ends of the pitch and longer in the middle - which they have tried this week against Hampshire, to little effect, and the match before the game in question, against Yorkshire, and there was no extreme movement or bounce.

The same could not be said for this wicket.

Leicestershire felt we had a good game, which went for four days and included two scores of 90 or more. With low scores around the country that week, they did not think this pitch warranted further punishment.

The Foxes are gutted about this. They had worked so hard to work themselves back into a survival battle, only for this to ruin their chances of staying up after a 23-year wait. They need to beat Hampshire now, then title-chasing Warwickshire, and hope results elsewhere go their way. That is unlikely.

They would argue a 27-point deduction is severe and would also question whether pitches that lead to high-scoring bore draws deserve similar treatment, as well as other low-scoring pitches. However, the fact remains the club knew the rules before deciding on this pitch and it has cost them.