LEICESTERSHIRE have had eight points of their 27-point County Championship deduction reinstated but their Division One status remains in limbo.
The original penalty for breaching pitch regulations, relating to their win against Glamorgan in August, was announced on 16 September.
The amendment to the punishment comes after the Cricket Regulator raised with the Cricket Discipline Panel (CDP) whether the 19-point penalty imposed under the County Championship’s playing conditions had been taken into account when making its original decision.
The Cricket Regulator said it had “raised this issue with the CDP and Leicestershire CCC in the interests of fairness and transparency”.
A section of the County Championship’s playing conditions state that teams charged with producing a pitch rated as poor or below average, and the CDP upholding the charge, would receive zero points from the fixture in question.
Leicestershire took 19 points from the match against Glamorgan – 16 for winning and three bonus points – which were removed but remain the subject of appeal.
The CDP had applied an additional eight-point deduction, a further eight-point penalty suspended for a year, plus a £5,000 fine.
The latter two sanctions remain part of the amended decision but the eight-point deduction for this season has been waived.
Without the 27 points being docked, Leicestershire would have finished two points above the relegation zone.
After the eight-point reinstatement but with the 19-point penalty still in place, the Foxes are 17 points behind Essex and will be relegated if their appeal is unsuccessful.
Leicestershire had already stated their intention to appeal against the panel’s decision and a statement by chief executive Emma White said the club’s position is “unchanged” by the amendment. (BBC Sport)