A player being forced to take a near three-hour Uber ride between grounds has led to county cricket’s trial of an injury substitute rule facing more scrutiny.

Lancashire chief executive Daniel Gidney told The Telegraph that it was a “farce” that Lancashire quick Ollie Sutton had to make a roughly 200-kilometre journey to replace the injured Ajeet Singh Dale despite two reserve pace bowlers sitting on the sidelines in Bristol.

Get all the latest cricket news, highlights and analysis delivered straight to your inbox with Fox Sports Sportmail. Sign up now!!!

Singh Dale pulled up with a hamstring injury at the beginning of his third over after opening the bowling against his former county Gloucestershire in the Division 2 four-day clash, which began on Friday.

Lancashire had medium-pacer Tom Bailey and 25-year-old quick Mitchell Stanley waiting in the wings, but Stanley experienced back spasms on the morning of the game was ruled out.

The James Anderson-led side therefore nominated to have Bailey fill the void, but match officials denied their request.

The 34-year-old is a slower bowler than Dale, but boasts a superb first-class average with the ball of less than 25 from 125 matches.

Bailey’s average is far superior to Dale’s, who is more than a decade his junior and averages 35.8.

But match officials were happy to tick off the inclusion of Sutton, who was playing for Lancashire’s Second XI at Leicestershire at the time.

The left-arm quick, who played Melbourne club cricket in recent years and is also a handy batter, is also not a like-for-like replacement for Singh Dale given his different angle.

“We had a right-arm opening bowler in Tom Bailey, which we feel is a perfect replacement,” Lancashire head coach Steven Croft said.

“It’s not someone coming in bowling 10mph quicker.

“We asked for Bails [Bailey] to be the replacement, but that was denied unfortunately. We had to then turn to a left-arm seam bowling all-rounder, which did get granted to replace Ajeet, which doesn’t sit well with us really.

“He’s a different skill set, he’s left-arm, and he bats. We had a literal like-for-like in Tom Bailey, who is a right-arm seam opening bowler. I don’t know how we’ve got to that conclusion, but it’s got there in the end, and we crack on.”

READ MORE

IPL’s $4m Aussie explodes to overcome form slump as Indian star goes ballistic

Star’s blistering ton to no avail as Ponting’s coaching masterstroke maintains perfect IPL start

Triple treat for cricket fans: Full details of how to watch Aussies and rivals touring Bangladesh

Cam Green relieved after 1st IPL 50 | 01:30

Sutton did not bowl as the Cameron Bancroft-led Gloucestershire made it to stumps at 6/124 from 44 overs on a rain-affected opening day.

Lancashire were left a bowler down as Sutton made the Uber journey southwest.

Bailey could have slotted straight into the attack as he was at the ground, but Croft said officials told him they pointed to “stats and experience” when making their decision.

“It was a little bit on stats and experience, but nothing on that was stipulated when these regulations came out,” Croft said.

“There is going to be grey areas, but if Tom bowled that next ball I don’t think anyone in the whole ground would have batted an eyelid.

“We weren’t trying to pull the wool over anyone’s eyes. If it was that much of an advantage we’d have started with Bails. It’s a tough one to take, and bizarre that it’s not been granted.”

It was the ninth substitution made since the rule was introduced at the start of the season, but it was not the first to cause a stir.

The Sheffield Shield brought in injury replacement’s during the summer just gone, and it appeared to be implemented with little resistance.

Teams were allowed to replace players who sustained injuries on the first two days of a match with a like-for-like replacement.

In the Sheffield Shield final, Victoria subbed in Mitchell Perry for the injured Sam Elliott and Perry took a wicket with his first ball after being the selection hard luck story of the final.

But many in England have been left outraged by the rule.

Somerset also had to call up a player from a Second XI game last week when Will Smeed replaced Tom Kohler-Cadmore.

While Victoria’s Fergus O’Neill has returned to Nottinghamshire this year and was subbed out and replaced by Lyndon James because five-Test quick Olly Stone was deemed to bowl too quickly.

O’Neill also does not need to miss a game as a result.

With Nottinghamshire’s next game falling outside of the mandatory eight-day stand-down period, O’Neill is free to play.

Fergus O’Neill celebrates his 50 during day one of the County Championship Division 1 match between Nottinghamshire and Glamorgan.Source: Getty Images

“It is getting beyond ridiculous. The County Championship, after the England and Wales Cricket Board agreed to experiment with substitutions for injury this season, is fast becoming the theatre of the absurd,” The Telegraph’s chief cricket writer Scyld Berry wrote.

“Allowing a substitute for someone who has been concussed has to be right,” Berry added.

“Otherwise the concussed player, to show his commitment to his team, will take the risk of carrying on playing and could damage himself irreparably.

“But other injuries in cricket are an occupational hazard and, save for concussions, should surely stay that way. Otherwise there is no incentive for bowlers to warm up properly in future. Dale and other opening bowlers can turn their arm over a couple of times, save all their energy, and if they pull up with an injury so what? Only eight days off sick and he will be allowed by the new regulation to play again.

“Cricket is becoming a game not of 11 per side but 12 or even 13.”

Berry also shared his sympathies for those having to enforce the new rule.

“Match referees, in a second major drawback to this system, are being placed in an impossible position,” he wrote.

“What two cricketers are alike? Even if they are twins like Jamie and Craig Overton, they can differ enormously, between fast and fast-medium in this case. For referees to have to judge who is a like-for-like replacement is again absurd.”

The likes of Berry and many others in the Old Dart may have their prayers answered.

After much backlash, it was reported by the BBC that the England and Wales Cricket Board may change the rule next month when the County Championship goes on break for the T20 Blast.

Every team will have played six games by then, but “the ECB sees this as the fairest and earliest time to make changes if they are required”.

“The implementation of replacements is being trialled across the 2026 season, and the trial will not be scrapped midway through the year,” the report continued.

It has been suggested that teams may have to list designated substitutes before the toss and replacements can only come from that list.

Such a situation would not resolve potential like-for-like issues, but it would prevent teams having to pay large Uber bills to high tail a player to a ground.