Champions Essex (1st title) Matches played 47 | Participants 20 | |
Administrator(s) Test and County Cricket Board Cricket format Limited overs cricket
(55 overs per innings) Most runs 591 Graham Gooch (Essex) | ||
The 1979 Benson & Hedges Cup was the eighth competing of cricket's Benson & Hedges Cup. The competition was won by Essex County Cricket Club.
Contents
Controversy
Going into the final round of matches in Group A, Somerset held a three-point lead over both Glamorgan and Worcestershire. Worcestershire were due to play Somerset at New Road while Glamorgan had an easy fixture against Minor Counties South at Watford.
It was mathematically possible for both Glamorgan and Worcestershire to overhaul Somerset in the table, and qualify for the quarter-finals, if both teams won (leaving all three on nine points) and their bowling strike rates improved and Somerset's worsened. Bowling strike rate was used as a tie-breaker in the event of teams finishing level on points.
In the match at Worcester, Somerset's captain Brian Rose won the toss and elected to bat. After one over, which yielded a no-ball, Rose declared, leaving Worcestershire a target of two which they knocked off in 10 balls. This left Somerset's strike rate intact. The action was in fact unnecessary as Glamorgan's match was washed out.
Although Rose was condemned, there was nothing in the Rules against a declaration in limited overs cricket at the time. The action was however viewed as being against the spirit of the game, and the TCCB expelled Somerset from the Benson & Hedges Cup on 1 June, their place in the quarter-finals being taken by Glamorgan.
Group A
1 Somerset declared at 1/0 after one over in the match against Worcestershire in order to ensure that they could not be overtaken on strike-rate. Eight days after the match, an emergency meeting of the TCCB disciplinary committee was called, and Somerset were ejected from the competition for bringing the game into disrepute.