Nicholas Pooran has been handed four suspension points after admitting breaching level 3 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel during the 3rd ODI match against Afghanistan at Lucknow on Monday.
Pooran was charged with violating Article 2.14 of the code, which relates to “changing the condition of the ball” after video footage showed him scratching the surface of the ball with his thumbnail. He will now miss the next four T20I games (three against Afghanistan and one against India) and will have five demerit points added to his record.
Pooran admitted the offence on Tuesday and accepted the sanction proposed by Chris Broad of the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees and, as such, there was no need for a formal hearing.
The charge was levelled by on-field umpires Bismillah Shinwari and Ahmed Durrani and third umpire Ahmed Pakteen as well as fourth umpire Izatullah Safi.
Level 3 breaches carry a minimum penalty of four suspension points which translates to five demerit points on a player’s record and a ban of two Test matches or four ODI / T20I matches and a maximum penalty of 12 suspension points which equates to 6 demerit points.
Pooran issues apology:
The 24-year old has been one of the leading batsmen for West Indies this year. He has scored 535 runs in 16 ODI matches with a century and three half-centuries. His breakthrough performance was 118 against Sri Lanka during the ICC Cricket World Cup earlier this year. He has made 14 appearances in T20Is with 274 runs, including two half-centuries.
-CWI
