On Saturday, February 24, the International Cricket Council (ICC) issued a two-match ban to Sri Lanka captain Wanindu Hasaranga. This decision came after he was found guilty of verbally abusing the umpires during the third T20I against Afghanistan on Wednesday in Dambulla. Hasaranga was upset with the umpire for not calling a full-toss delivery a no-ball.
Why Wanindu Hasaranga Got Banned?
The captain of the Sri Lankan T20I team, Wanindu Hasaranga, got a two-match suspension from the International Cricket Council (ICC). This happened because after a match, Hasaranga argued with umpire Lyndon Hannibal about a no-ball decision that wasn’t given during a tense moment in the series finale.
As a result, Hasaranga received three demerit points and was fined half of his match fee. Since he reached a total of five demerit points within two years, he now has to miss the first two T20Is against Bangladesh next month. The ICC is strict about upholding the game’s integrity and takes firm action against violations of the Code of Conduct.
Wanindu Hasaranga has been handed a two-match ban and fined 50% of his match fee for his outburst against umpire Lyndon Hannibal #SLvAFG pic.twitter.com/553lEZ3HUf
— Cricbuzz (@cricbuzz) February 25, 2024
What is Concept of Demerit Points in Cricket?
In cricket, there’s a system called demerit points to punish players who keep breaking the rules. The rulebook, known as the Code of Conduct, has four levels of offenses, each with a set number of demerit points. Once a player gets these points, they stick around on their record for two years.
If a player gets four demerit points in this time, they can’t play in one Test match or two limited-over games. If they collect eight demerit points within two years, the ban becomes twice as long. When players do something wrong on the field, the umpires report it to the match referee, who decides how many demerit points to give. The players or teams can argue against this decision, and there might be a hearing to sort things out.
Afghanistan Batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz Also Got Trouble
In the same cricket game, Afghanistan’s opener, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, also got in trouble with the ICC. He was fined 15 percent of his match fee for not following the rules during the match. Specifically, he changed the grip of his bat even though the umpire told him not to.
Both Gurbaz and the Sri Lankan captain admitted they did something wrong and accepted the charges from the match referee, Chris Broad. Because they owned up to it, there was no need for a big formal hearing. The charges were brought by the on-field umpires Lyndon Hannibal and Raveendra Wimalasiri, along with third umpire Ruchira Palliyaguruge and fourth umpire Ranmore Martinez.
Wanindu Hasaranga in IPL 2024
Sri Lanka’s leg spinner, Wanindu Hasaranga, was picked up by Sunrisers Hyderabad at the IPL 2024 auction in Dubai for his base price of Rs. 1.5 crore on Tuesday. Hasaranga, known for his tricky bowling variations, first joined the IPL in 2021 when Royal Challengers Bangalore signed him as a mid-season replacement for Adam Zampa. The leg-spinner has taken 216 wickets in 157 T20 matches with an average of 16.99. Apart from his bowling skills, Hasaranga is a valuable batter, having scored more than 1700 runs in T20s at a strike rate of 143.08.
