Dubai, Oct 21:
India vice-captain Shafali Verma has received an official reprimand from the International Cricket Council (ICC) for breaching its Code of Conduct during the second T20 International against Zimbabwe in Raipur on Sunday.
The 22-year-old batter was found guilty of a Level 1 offence under Article 2.2 of the ICC Code of Conduct, which deals with the abuse of cricket equipment, clothing, ground equipment or fixtures during an international match.
The incident occurred in the 12th over of Zimbabwe’s innings when Shafali dropped Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano at mid-off off the bowling of Shree Charani. Frustrated by the missed opportunity, she threw the ball to the ground. The incident was reported by the match officials, including on-field umpires Vrinda Rathi and Gayathri Venugopalan, third umpire Anna Harris and fourth umpire Janani Narayanan.
In addition to the reprimand, one demerit point was added to Shafali’s disciplinary record. It was her first offence during a 24-month period. She admitted the breach and accepted the sanction proposed by ICC match referee G.S. Lakshmi, eliminating the need for a formal hearing.
Level 1 offences carry penalties ranging from an official reprimand to a fine of up to 50 per cent of a player’s match fee, along with one or two demerit points. The disciplinary action comes despite India’s convincing nine-wicket victory in the match, underlining the ICC’s emphasis on maintaining professional conduct on the field.