Sri Lanka’s T20I skipper, Wanindu Hasaranga, has been slapped with a two-match suspension and fined 50% of his match fee by the ICC following his heated confrontation with umpire Lyndon Hannibal. The incident unfolded during the third T20I against Afghanistan when Hasaranga vehemently contested the umpire’s decision not to call a no-ball for height on a delivery bowled to Kamindu Mendis by Wafadar Momand. Sri Lanka, trailing by 11 runs off three balls at the time, eventually lost the match by a narrow margin of 3 runs.
Expressing his discontent, Hasaranga criticized the umpire’s judgment, stating, “That kind of thing shouldn’t happen in an international match.” He went further to cast doubt on Hannibal’s suitability for international cricket, citing the gravity of the situation where a high full toss could have endangered the batsman.
The ICC, citing a breach of article 2.13 of its Code of Conduct pertaining to “Personal abuse of a Player, Player Support Personnel, Umpire or Match Referee during an International Match,” announced the penalty against Hasaranga. The cricketer now faces a suspension for one Test match, two ODIs, or T20Is, whichever comes first, due to the accumulation of five demerit points, three of which were incurred from this incident.
As a result, Sri Lanka will be without Hasaranga’s services for the initial two T20Is against Bangladesh in March. Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s Rahmanullah Gurbaz has also been reprimanded by the ICC, receiving one demerit point and a 15% fine of his match fee for “disobeying an umpire’s instruction during an international match.” Gurbaz repeatedly altered his bat’s grip on the field despite warnings from the umpires.
