The 1996 World Cup semi-final at Eden Gardens was effectively decided by the match referee after the crowd rioted when India collapsed in the chase.
The 1996 World Cup semi-final between India and Sri Lanka at Eden Gardens in Kolkata is one of the darkest days in Indian cricket. Sri Lanka, batting first, posted 251/8. India were cruising at 98/1 before a dramatic collapse — they went from 120/1 to 120/8.
As India's defeat became inevitable, the 100,000-strong crowd at Eden Gardens began throwing bottles and debris onto the field. Fires were lit in the stands. Play was suspended twice as police used tear gas to control the situation.
Match referee Clive Lloyd eventually awarded the match to Sri Lanka by default. It was a humiliating end for India, with the team having to be escorted off the field for their safety. The images of fires in the stands and police wielding lathis became iconic.
The incident raised serious questions about crowd control, security at major events, and the pressure placed on Indian cricketers to win at home. It also contributed to the perception that some grounds were not suitable for hosting high-pressure knockout matches.
Match awarded to Sri Lanka by match referee after crowd riots made play impossible. A dark chapter in Indian cricket.
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Various county and representative sides
1864-06-01
The legalisation of overarm bowling in 1864 created an immediate grey zone: how high could the arm go, and at what point did a fast delivery become an illegal throw? Through the 1860s English cricket struggled with this question as a succession of fast bowlers developed actions that umpires suspected but rarely no-balled, creating a climate of suspicion that would recur in every generation of cricket thereafter.