ICC sanctions Babar Azam, Pakistan for slow over-rate against England

Dubai: Pakistan have been punished for their slow over-rate during the Edgbaston Test against England, with the costly sanction further hurting their position in the World Test Championship (WTC) standings.

The Men in Green were ruled to be 11 overs short of the target after time allowances were taken into consideration during the third Test, which England won by eight wickets. Pakistan were fined 50 per cent of their match fee.

Moreover, they faced another sanction after their 11 WTC points were docked as per the statement issued by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

The deduction leaves Pakistan ninth in the WTC standings with a points percentage of 4.63, leaving them last in the table with only 5 points. West Indies, who are above them, are 25 points ahead.

The sanction was imposed by Ranjan Madugalle of the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees after on-field umpires Paul Reiffel and Chris Gaffaney, third umpire Allahudien Palekar and fourth umpire Russell Warren levelled the charge.

Under Article 2.22 of the ICC Code of Conduct, players are fined five per cent of their match fee for every over their team falls short of the required rate, with the maximum penalty capped at 50 per cent. Meanwhile, Article 16.11.2 of the WTC playing conditions states that teams lose one point for every over short.

This obviously includes Babar Azam who was the captain of the Pakistani side. He along with other competing players will be on the receiving end of the punishment.

The sanction adds to a difficult Test series for Pakistan, who lost all three matches against England. Their campaign was also surrounded by controversy, with the team sacking head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed during the series and sending seven players back home.

Pakistan’s next WTC assignment will come in November when they host Sri Lanka for a two-Test series in Rawalpindi and Lahore.