Should The ICC Legalize Ball-Tampering?

In every game, skills plays a very significant role. A player should have good skills to play any sport. Cricket is one of the outdoor sports which, at a professional level, needs real promising skill to play. The requirement of skills differs vastly depending on one’s major role in the game. Batsmen use their batting skills to play different shots against the bowlers while bowlers utilize their skills to tackle the batsman. Reverse swing is one of the cricketing skills which every bowler wants to use against the batsman. Reverse swing totally depends on how well a bowler shines the ball for swing. To bowl a reverse swing, one side of the ball should be shiny while the other should be rough. This is challenging to achieve since the bowler can not use an artificial substance to make the ball rough as per the rules by ICC. In the last two decades, ICC banned or fined many cricketers for using an artificial substance like - sandpaper, sugar, etc. To shine the ball without breaking the ICC rules, bowlers use their saliva to make the ball shine. 

A few days ago, ICC said that they are planning to legalize the ball-tampering in cricket due to COVID-19. ICC is planning to give freedom to the bowlers to use the artificial substance. The question is, if ICC legalized the rule of ball-tampering then what are the ways using which the bowlers can tamper the ball for reverse swing.  The bowler can use Vaseline to shine the ball or sandpaper to make the ball rough. However, there are many questions that can arise as to how the ICC will legalize the ball-tampering in the game: 

1. The Vaseline used for the SG Test or Kookaburra ball should be the same or not?

2. The Vaseline used in the matches should be of the same company in all over the world?

3. The rule of ball-tampering would be after some overs or right from the first over?

If the ICC did not permit the bowlers to use any artificial substance and stop the usage of saliva to shine the ball in the game then it will become very difficult for the bowlers. In the last few years, we have seen that cricket has become a batsman dominating game because of some powerplay rules. If; ICC resists players to not use saliva on the ball then the game will become batsman dominant completely. 

Australia's Cameron Bancroft tampering the ball with an artificial substance

Many current and former cricketers have given their views on the legalization of ball-tampering in cricket. The current Aussie opener David Warner has said, "You're sharing change rooms and you're sharing everything else. I don't see why you have to change that." The former Caribbean bowler Michael Holding is also against the legalization of ball tempering. He finds no logic in legalizing the ball-tampering. The king of reverse swing and former Pakistani bowler Waqar Younis feels that it's practically not possible to prevent a bowler using the sweat or saliva. While former Proteas Pacer Alan Donald has supported the idea of using an artificial substance to tamper the ball. 

Keeping all this in mind, the ICC needs to take the final decision on the implementation of ball-tampering after some time. What are your views on the same? Let us know in the comments section.