ALTHOUGH there was no official response from management, it is known the West Indies are upset over the severity of the sentence placed yesterday on wicketkeeper and vice-captain Denesh Ramdin for his appeal for a spilled, tumbling catch off Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq in their opening victory in the Champions Trophy at the Oval last Friday.
Misbah was originally ruled out by standing umpire Steve Davis but his decision was overturned after square-leg umpire Nigel Llong referred to television replays that showed the ball popped out of Ramdin’s gloves.
International Cricket Council (ICC) match referee Chris Broad, the former England opening batsman known for his stern attitude to ICC code of conduct violations, found Ramdin guilty on the charge of a level two breach and imposed the maximum sentence of “100 per cent of the applicable match fee” and suspension for two ODI matches.
There is no record of such a stern previous punishment for such an offence.
It rules Ramdin out of their two remaining qualifying round matches. The first at the Oval today is against India, who also won their first match over South Africa; the last is against South Africa in Cardiff on Friday. The top two teams in the two groups advance to the semi-finals.
