In a dramatic turn of events, India’s cricket captain Harmanpreet Kaur has been slapped with a suspension and a massive fine by the ICC for her on-field behavior during the ICC Women’s Championship series against Bangladesh in Dhaka. The star player’s actions resulted in her being banned from her team’s next two international matches.
The ICC Code of Conduct was breached twice by Kaur, leading to severe consequences. In a Level 2 offense, she was fined 50 percent of her match fee and was hit with three demerit points for showing dissent at an umpire’s decision. This occurred when Kaur expressed her frustration by hitting the wickets with her bat after being ruled out caught at slip-off spinner Nahida Akter.
As if that wasn’t enough, Kaur faced an additional 25 percent fine of her match fee for a Level 1 offense. She was found guilty of breaching Article 2.7, which deals with public criticism related to an incident occurring in an international match. During the presentation ceremony, the India captain openly criticized the umpiring in the match, earning her yet another reprimand.
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Showing remorse for her actions, Kaur admitted to the offenses and agreed to the sanctions proposed by Akhtar Ahmed of the Emirates ICC International Panel of Match Referees. As a result, there was no need for a formal hearing, and the punishments were swiftly imposed.
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The penalties for Level 2 breaches are no joke, ranging from 50 to 100 percent of a player’s match fee and three or four demerit points. On top of that, Kaur’s four demerit points triggered a two-match suspension, which means she will miss India’s upcoming contests.
The suspension points translate to a ban from either one Test or two ODIs or two T20Is, whichever comes first for the player or player support personnel. Consequently, Harmanpreet Kaur’s suspension leaves her sidelined from India’s forthcoming matches, raising concerns for the team’s future performance without their esteemed captain.