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Matthew Wade, the Australian wicketkeeper-batsman, has been issued a demerit point on his disciplinary record for “showing dissent at an umpire’s decision” during the team’s recent match against England at the Kensington Oval in Barbados on Saturday.
This marks Wade’s first offense within the preceding 24-month period. The International Cricket Council (ICC) stated in a press release that Wade breached Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct, with the announcement coming on Monday.
“Australia player Matthew Wade has been handed an official reprimand for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct during a Group B match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 against England at the Kensington Oval in Barbados on Saturday,” ICC said.
In the 18th over of the first innings, during Australia’s batting, the incident unfolded. Wade, appearing to withdraw from his batting stance, also played the delivery back to the bowler, Adil Rashid. However, umpire Nitin Menon deemed the delivery legal, sparking an argument between Wade and the match official.
Wade was determined to have violated Article 2.8 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which pertains to dissent against an umpire’s decision,“showing dissent at an Umpire’s decision during an International Match.”
Wade, aged 36, acknowledged his wrongdoing and agreed to the penalty suggested by Andy Pycroft, a member of the ICC elite panel of match referees, eliminating the necessity for a formal hearing.
The charge was brought forward by on-field umpires Nitin Menon and Joel Wilson, along with third umpire Asif Yaqoob and fourth umpire Jayaraman Madangopal.
For Level 1 breaches, the penalties range from an official reprimand as the minimum sanction to a maximum penalty of 50 percent of the player’s match fee, along with the imposition of one or two demerit points.
Despite the incident, Australia proceeded to win the match and appear poised to advance to the Super-8s stage. Their next group-stage match is against Namibia, scheduled to take place at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on June 12.
