A cricket club in Britain has taken a rather shocking decision and has put a ban on hitting sixes. This step has been taken by the Southwick and Shoreham Cricket Club of West Sussex. This club, which was formed in 1790, had to take the decision to ban sixes because of the damage caused to the buildings around its territorial ground, the reason being big shots by batters. There are many houses around the ground of this club and when a batsman hits a rather big six, they damage them houses. Window panels have been broken many times and cars have also been damaged. In Cricket, if a batsman hits a shot and sends the ball out lf the boundary, while the ball being in the air, it is called a six. Hence, a batsman traditionally gets six runs for hitting a six.
But in the instructions issues by the club, it is said that if a batsman hits a six, he will not get any runs. If a six is hit for the second time, the batsman will be declared out. In a report, the club’s treasurer Mark Broxhap said that in the recent past, there have been incidents where cars, houses and roofs have been damaged. Hitting sixes has been banned due to this. He said, ‘We do not want to pay expensive insurance or face legal cases against us.’
When this club was established, there was no residential area in any nearby region. But now since the time has changed, there are a lot of houses nearby. The club already has nets installed to prevent the ball from going out, but the height of the nets is not much. Some players playing for the club have expressed how unsatisfied they feel over the ban of hitting sixes. One batsman said that hitting six is a big deal for any batsman, it gives him respect. Removing it takes away the joy of the game. At the same time, another player said that it is not right to make such a change. If a person buys a house near a cricket ground, then some balls can go in his garden.
