Description of what happened
Former Pakistan captain and star batsman Mohammad Hafeez has defended the decision to field his compatriot Salman Butt in the opening match of the Asia Cup despite stiff opposition from India. We’re doing what’s best for Pakistan cricket, Hafeez said. If it is good for him, and he deserves it, then we can’t stop him.
Pakistan team management felt Butt deserved to be selected based on his recent performances for Pakistan A and the national team after recovering from a five-year suspension for spot-fixing.
Why you should care
Pakistan faces the Hong Kong Cricket Association in its last Asia Cup match. Pakistan could not shake off the Bangladesh loss and needed a win to make it to the finals. Things heated up after Pakistani batsman Babar Azam made 96 runs in 69 balls at an average of 148 as he secured victory for his side. After receiving a gesture from Ahmed Shehzad that was not appreciated by Pakistani opponents, Mohammad Hafeez and their wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan reacted by creating a confrontation with Pakistani captain Sarfraz Ahmed. Asif Ali is said to have taken umbrage at Hafeez’s taunting of Sarfraz. He shoved Hafeez away before punches were thrown between Hafeez and Ahmed. It got so intense that other players had to intervene. All four players were fined 25 per cent of their match fees, but this has caused some controversy on social media as some people feel that it was unfair to punish all four players when only two engaged in violence while the other two tried to break them apart.
Analysis of the event and its relevance to your followers
The ICC has fined Pakistan players Usman Salahuddin and Imad Wasim 50% match fees for violating the player conduct policy during last Saturday’s game against Bangladesh. They have also fined Bangladesh opener, Tamim Iqbal, with 25% match fees for the conduct of a similar nature.
These fines are an indication that violence on the field is not tolerated by cricketing authorities and will be taken serious action against those who violate these guidelines. Hopefully, we see fewer incidences of this behaviour in games to come!
If you were the decision maker, what would you do?
As a cricket player myself and as an umpire for over ten years of my life, I would hold everyone accountable for their actions on the field. Cricket is a game played by a gentleman and it deserves to be treated as such. I believe this incident could have been avoided had someone stepped in or taken control. The on-field umpires should take charge of the match so that there are no more altercations between players.
Relevant Quotes From The Official Statement (cited below)
The umpires – John Holder of West Indies and Aleem Dar of Pakistan – penalised both batsmen for inappropriate behaviour. This includes touching or physically interfering with the ball and showing dissent at an umpire’s decision, ICC said in a statement.
The players have also been found to have violated the player conduct provisions of the code of conduct. Holder imposed a 25 per cent match fee penalty on both players (whilst Dar opted to impose a 50 per cent match fee penalty on both players) given that it was their first offence within 12 months.
Asif Ali has also been banned from participating in his team’s third Asia Cup match against Afghanistan, which will be played tomorrow.
