Leicestershire’s relegation to Division Two of the County Championship was confirmed on Wednesday after their appeal against a hefty points penalty was rejected.
The midlands club challenged the stripping of all 19 points they received for the poor pitch prepared for victory over Glamorgan in August, having previously had eight of the original 27-point punishment reinstated after the Cricket Regulator raised questions of the cricket discipline panel’s decision.
They were also hit with a £5,000 fine, and now return to Division Two at the first time of asking after finishing second from bottom, 17 points behind Essex.
‘We are hugely disappointed with this outcome, but we will not let it define us,’ said Leicestershire chief executive Emma White.
‘Come pre-season, we will be ready to battle it out in Division Two, and to fight our way back.’
Three time County Championship winners Leicestershire are set to be relegated to the second division in November after a heft points deduction
Leicestershire’s victory over the Welsh club on August 23 was just their second of the season and appeared to give their survival chances a shot in the arm.
But the state of the playing surface came under intense scrutiny, leading the match officials to summon the England and Wales Cricket Board’s pitch and grounds adviser Andy Mackay to Grace Road for a post-match inspection.
Leicestershire’s head groundsman Callum Lewin went on to tell the cricket regulator there were ‘circumstances leading up to the game that were just out of my control,’ including a drastically hot spell of weather and an ‘unscheduled Bollywood filming event’ in the middle just hours before the match started.
Mackay had found the pitch short of expectations for a first-class match, with 257 representing the highest innings, and Lewin’s argument dismissed in adjudicating on a reprimand.
