Rawalpindi Test: Pakistan and Bangladesh lost key World Test Championship points by sustaining sluggish over-rates in the first Test, which recently finished at Rawalpindi. This is a major setback for both teams in reaching the final.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) said match referee Ranjan Madugalle imposed the sanctions after seeing that Pakistan were six overs short of the target after time allowances were taken into consideration and lost six WTC points.
On the other hand, after securing a ten-wicket win, Bangladesh was docked three WTC points after being found three overs short of the acceptable rate. Due to the sanctions, Bangladesh has now dropped to seventh place and will fall behind South Africa in the standings, which could affect their chances of reaching the final. Meanwhile, Pakistan remains in the eighth spot, but their chances of climbing up the rankings have been significantly reduced.
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Moreover, both teams have been penalised. Pakistan was fined 30 percent of its match fee, while Bangladesh was penalised 15 percent.
“In accordance with Article 2.22 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to minimum over-rate offences, players are fined five per cent of their match fee for every over their side fails to bowl in the allotted time,” said ICC.
“In addition, as per Article 16.11.2 of the ICC World Test Championship playing conditions, a side is penalised one point for each over short,” added ICC.
Both captains Shan Masood and Najmul Hossain Shanto pleaded guilty to the offences and accepted the proposed sanctions, so there was no need for formal hearings. Bangladesh have a 1-0 lead in the two-match series and will face Pakistan in the second Test at Rawalpindi on Friday.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has been fined 10 percent of his match fee for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct in the same game. In addition, one demerit point has been added to Shakib’s disciplinary record, for whom it was the first offence in 24 months.
Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand, a maximum penalty of 50 percent of a player’s match fee, and one or two demerit points. The incident occurred in the 33rd over of Pakistan’s second innings on Sunday, when Shakib threw the ball inappropriately towards the batter, the ball going over Mohammad Rizwan’s head to the wicketkeeper.
“Shakib was found to have breached Article 2.9 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to ‘throwing a ball (or any other item of cricket equipment such as a water bottle) at or near a Player, Player Support Personnel, Umpire, Match Referee or any other third person in an inappropriate and/or dangerous manner during an International Match’,” said the ICC.
Shakib admitted the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by Madugalle, so there was no need for a formal hearing. On-field umpires Richard Kettleborough and Adrian Holdstock, third umpire Michael Gough and fourth umpire Rashid Riaz levelled the charges.
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–IANS
