Kent women fail in unprecedented appeal

The ECB have announced that they are upholding the original on-field umpires' decision that the Kent's women's county championship match against Sussex ended in a tie, after Kent lodged an appeal against the result.

The game was originally declared a tie by the umpires after Sussex ran a single off the last ball amidst premature celebrations from the Kent players, who believed the ball to be already dead.

The result was subsequently declared as pending by the ECB as they investigated the incident.

An ECB statement said: "The ECB has been in communication with the umpires, and the Kent and Sussex management teams regarding events at the conclusion of the Royal London Women's One-Day Championship match between the two sides on Monday 4th May 2015.

"Following receipt of all information and discussions with the Head of ECB Association of Cricket Officials, it has been decided that there is no reason to overturn any decision made by the umpires on the day, nor the outcome of the game as had been determined on the day. The match is therefore a tie."

In the wake of the ECB's decision, Kent players and coaching staff took to Twitter to express their dissatisfaction. Kent coach Stuart Eddicott branded the ECB's judgement "shameful" and appeared to question the honesty of the Sussex players and officials when he tweeted: "So the Spirit of Cricket has taken a big U-Turn this weekend it seems. As has telling the truth... #shameful".

It is still unclear on what basis Kent launched their appeal, given that the official playing regulations do not allow for such a procedure. Challenging the result of a match is in fact thought to be unprecedented even in the 126-year history of the men's county championship.

The two teams are scheduled to face each other again in a Twenty20 game at Arundel on July 5, a fixture that no doubt will have added spice given this week's controversy.