The Marylebone Cricket Club has ruled that the ICC had no power to alter the result of the 2006 England v Pakistan Oval Test.
MCC urges ICC to hand win back to England
The Marylebone Cricket Club has accused the International Cricket Council of acting beyond its powers for altering the result of the 2006 Oval Test between England and Pakistan.
England were originally awarded the win after Pakistan refused to take the field in protest at ball tampering accusations, before the ICC changed the result to a draw in July.
But controversy surrounding the match refuses to go away and on Sunday the game's rule-makers urged the ICC to reverse their decision saying that it set a 'dangerous precedent'.
In a statement MCC Head of Cricket John Stephenson said: "The MCC's World Cricket Committee met here over the weekend and states that ICC was not justified in overturning the result of the Oval Test.
"The Committee urges ICC to revoke its decision which is contrary to the laws of cricket and to confirm that the original result of the match still stands."
Inappropriate
What was the first and only forfeit in the history of Test cricket happened when umpires Darrell Hair and Billy Doctrove penalised Pakistan five penalty runs for alleged ball-tampering.
Pakistan reacted angrily and refused to take the field after tea on the fourth day in protest, leading the umpires to declare that they had forfeited the match and award it to England.
After Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul Haq was cleared of the charge, the ICC said that the original result had been inappropriate in view of the unique circumstances and changed it to a draw.
Despite handing most of its powers to the ICC and England and Wales Cricket Board in 1993 however, the MCC - the former governing body of cricket in England and across the world - remains the framer and copyright holder of the Laws of Cricket.
And Stephenson insists that whatever the circumstances, ICC did not have the power to alter the result of a match.
"The ICC does not have the power under the laws of cricket to decide that results should be altered whether it feels them to be inappropriate or otherwise," he said.
"The ICC decision is wrong and sets a very dangerous precedent. Cricket is worse for this decision."
