Afghanistan’s Fazalhaq Farooqi has been fined 15 percent of his match fee for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct during the second ODI against Zimbabwe in Harare on Thursday, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said in a statement.
Farooqi was found to have violated Article 2.8 of the ICC Code of Conduct, which pertains to “showing dissent at an umpire’s decision during an international match.” In addition to the fine, one demerit point was added to Farooqi’s disciplinary record. This is the first offense recorded against him in a 24-month period, the ICC noted.
The incident occurred during the fifth over of Zimbabwe’s innings. Farooqi showed dissent after an LBW appeal against Craig Ervine was rejected, gesturing for a review even though the Decision Review System (DRS) was not in use for the match.
Farooqi admitted to the offense and accepted the penalty proposed by Andy Pycroft of the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees, avoiding the need for a formal hearing. The charge was leveled by on-field umpires Chris Brown and Percival Sizara, third umpire Langton Rusere, and fourth umpire Iknow Chabi.
Under ICC rules, Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand and a maximum penalty of 50 percent of the player’s match fee, along with one or two demerit points.
Despite the incident, Afghanistan secured a dominant victory in the second match, defeating Zimbabwe by 232 runs. The two teams are set to play the third and final ODI of the series today (Saturday).
