Following two violations of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Code of Conduct, India captain Harmanpreet Kaur will miss two international matches and be penalised 75% of her match fee, the sport’s governing body announced on Tuesday.
This decision is a hard hit on the Indian team, as their next two matches are at the Asian Games, and the team will have to begin its campaign without their captain.
Kaur also received three demerit points during the third match of the series against Bangladesh in Dhaka last week for expressing her frustration over her dismissal by hitting the wickets with her bat.
After she was ruled LBW off a Nahida Akhter delivery, she smashed the stumps with her bat and called the umpiring “pathetic” in the post-match presentation. She also mockingly asked the umpires to join the India and Bangladesh teams for the trophy ceremony. Nigar Sultana, the captain of Bangladesh, left with her team as a result of her actions and urged her Indian counterpart to “pick up some manners.”
There was no DRS (Decision Review System) available, amid Harmanpreet’s pleas and statements that she had a bott edge, which could have benefitted the Indian batter. It is interesting to mention that there was no DRS available all throughout the entire series involving both the women’s teams, and there was no live broadcasting of any of the three games.
Following the incident, the Indian women’s team captain garnered criticism from several prominent figures within the sport for her “deplorable” conducts.
Three or four demerit points, a minimum punishment of an official reprimand, and a penalty of 50% to 100% of the player’s match fee are typical consequences for a Level 2 violation. An official reprimand is usually the least punishment for a Level 1 violation, and the player can receive up to 50% of their match money in addition to one or two demerit points.
Kaur’s four demerit points are now two suspension points. Since two suspension points equate to a ban from one Test, two ODIs, or two T20Is, depending on which comes first for the player or player support personnel, Kaur is currently suspended from India’s next games.
