Hardik Pandya’s T20I debut was an eventful one, and his outpouring of emotion at the occasion has been officially admonished. He has been judged to have breached Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct during the first Twenty20 International against Australia in Adelaide on Tuesday.
He has been booked under Article 2.1.7, which relates to “Using language, actions or gestures which disparage or which could provoke an aggressive reaction from a batsman upon his/her dismissal during an International Match”.
The incident which the ICC press release referred to happened in the 15th over of the Australian innings, when Pandya reacted to getting Chris Lynn caught out for 17. Lynn was looking dangerous and hit the ball very hard, but it was plucked out of the air by Yuvraj, and Pandya started jumping around in joy. It was his first international wicket.
After a horror first over in which he conceded 19 runs, the 22-year-old Pandya was also relieved. He finished with figures of 2/37, and is likely to get a chance to build on the mixed start in the 2nd T20I on Friday.
The ICC, however, have found that Pandya went too close to the batsman in his celebration, and he could have incited an aggressive reaction. Because the intention of the parent body is to rid the game of violence, Pandya's action has been seen to be an offence.
His offence carries a minimum punishment of an official reprimand and a maximum penalty of 50% of his match fees.
ICC Press Release
The press release said: “Following the match, which India won by 37 runs, Pandy admitted the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by Jeff Crowe of the Elite Panel of ICC Match Referees. As such, there was no need for a formal hearing.The charge was levelled by on-field umpires Simon Fry and John Ward, third umpire Paul Wilson and fourth official Gerard Abood.For all first offences, Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand and a maximum penalty of 50 per cent of a player’s match fee.”
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