Deepti Sharma says “warning were issued” to Dean; Heather Knight calls her “liar”

The runout saga at Lords seems to be far from over. Both sides are not leaving an inch trying to prove that the other party was at fault.

What everyone had been scratching their head over was the fact that the bowler had planned the dismissal, to begin with. Or was it something instinctive?

Deepti Sharma has answered the question very clearly in her recent press appearance.

Deepti Sharma issues statement after runout incident at Lords

After the incident on Saturday, Deepti Sharma issued a statement for the first time. She said that everything they did was according to a plan they had formulated. However, the Indian spinner also mentioned that they had issued a formal warning to the batter. That, too, on several occasions.

Deepti said, “Yes, yes, definitely we did say because we told the umpires. But still, she was there, so we couldn’t do anything.” This statement should have put the debate of the spirit of the game to rest. But sadly, that didn’t happen.

Why? Let’s find out.

Heather Knight calls Deepti Sharma a liar

Following the admission of Deepti Sharma, Heather Knight, the English captain, came in support of her batter and team. She was not a part of the team due to surgery that ruled her out. But she seems to be very much in the loop with action that transpired on the field.

Knight chose to call out Deepti Sharma and the Indian women’s team on Twitter. She shared tweets to tell the world that Deepti Sharma had lied.

No warnings were given,” she tweeted on Monday, adding, “if they’re comfortable with the decision to affect (sic) the runout, India shouldn’t feel the need to justify it by lying about warnings”.

What’s interesting is the fact that Deepti’s statement contradicts her captain. Harmanpreet, in the post-match conference, had admitted that she didn’t know about Dean’s movement.

Harmanpreet Kaur admitted, “No, I wasn’t aware. And that’s what I’m saying, I’m actually happy she [Deepti] was aware because she was bowling from both ends in the middle and she knew she [Dean] was going and I think it was her awareness.”

Jason Gillespie puts the matter to rest

With all being said and done, the matter should be put to rest. There is no point in discussing whether a warning was given or not. And that is what Jason Gillespie of Australia has to say as well.

In a recent Twitter battle, Gillespie decided to announce his verdict, and it was one that everyone should agree to.

As Heath Knight and Michael Vaughn went on and on about how the Indians are lying, Gillespie said, “Sorry- there is nothing in the law that says a warning should ever be given for unfair play. Play by the laws, and the game will take care of itself.”

Everyone should accept this outcome and move on from the incident. Because, as Harmanpreet Kaur said in her interview: No crime has been committed. Hence, India should be lauded for their mindfulness. At the same time, Dean should stay in her crease.