Essex penalized 12 points for using 'wide bat'

When Feroze Khushi batted in the second innings of Essex's match against Nottinghamshire in April, the bat failed an on-field dimensions check. Essex won by a score of 254 runs.

Despite having scored 20 points during the game, Khushi's wider-than-permitted bat has cost Essex 12 of those points. With two games left after the current round of games, Essex is now 56 points behind Division One leaders Surrey as a result of the points deduction.

The Chelmsford club has officially acknowledged the suspension, which was expected for most of the season. There is, however, anger behind the scenes as well. Former Essex and England captain Keith Fletcher, who is currently the club president, told The Times that the choice was "absolutely stupid."

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On April 6, during Essex's second innings of their first Championship match against Nottinghamshire, the problem surfaced. When the on-field umpires, Steve O'Shaughnessy and Tom Lungley, discovered that Khushi's bat had become lodged in their measurement gauge, the 21-year-old was disqualified.

With two rounds left, including what should have been a crucial final-round meeting between the two clubs at Chelmsford, Essex leads Surrey by 56 points despite winning the match by a margin of 254 runs. However, they have since dropped 12 of the 20 points they earned from that match.

When the Cricket Regulator first brought up the complaint, Essex filed an appeal. The CDC stated in a 31-page ruling that several of the gauges used to evaluate Khushi's bat "did not comply precisely with the specifications".