India, Oct. 28 -- Former ICC match referee Chris Broad revealed in a recent interview that he had once received a phone call asking him to "be lenient" and spare India a slow over-rate fine during his days as a match official. Broad said the incident highlighted how India had received special treatment in certain situations, pointing to the role of cricket politics in the application of rules at the time.

Although he did not recall which particular game it was, or who India's opponent were in that match, speaking to The Telegraph, Broad revealed that he had received the phone call during the game, when the Men in Blue were three or four overs behind the required over-rate. "India were three, four overs down at the end of a game so it con...