India A Facing 10-Run Penalty After Rare Double Blunder by All-Rounder Vipraj Nigam Against Sri Lanka A

• The Unusual Incident: During the fourth match of the Tri-Nation A series at Dambulla, India A was slapped with a rare 10-run penalty due to repeated disciplinary errors by lower-order batter Vipraj Nigam.

• The Root Cause: The penalty was imposed because India A batters repeatedly ran down the middle of the pitch (the protected area). Spiked cricket shoes damage this zone, altering the pitch condition and behavior.

• The Warning Trigger: The issue started when No. 8 batter Anukul Roy was given the team’s first official warning by the umpires before getting dismissed in the 33rd over. According to ICC rules, this warning remains active for the rest of the team’s innings.

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• Nigam’s Double Blunder:

  • First Penalty (35th Over): Batting at No. 9, Vipraj Nigam ignored the warning and ran into the protected area during an over by Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, resulting in an immediate 5-run penalty.

  • Second Penalty (37th Over): Just two overs later, Nigam committed the same mistake while attempting a quick single off Kugathas Mathulan, triggering an additional 5-run penalty.

• The Match Impact: Because of these back-to-back blunders, Sri Lanka A was awarded 10 penalty runs, effectively meaning they started their run-chase at 10/0 before a single ball was even bowled.

• A Silver Lining: Despite the brain-fade moments on the pitch, Nigam somewhat redeemed his outing by scoring a crucial 51 runs. He stitched together a vital 104-run partnership for the 8th wicket alongside Suryansh Shedge (71), lifting India A from a precarious 143/7 to a competitive total of 265.