West Indies bowler fined for ICC Code of Conduct breach

West Indies pacer Jayden Seales has been fined 25 per cent of his match fee for a Level 1 breach of the ICC Code of Conduct during the second Test against India.

Seales was found guilty of breaching Article 2.9 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to “throwing a ball (or any other item of cricket equipment) at or near a player in an inappropriate and/or dangerous manner during an International Match.”

In addition to the fine, one demerit point has been added to Seales’ disciplinary record, taking his total demerit points to two in a 24-month period. The previous demerit point for Seales dates back to a Test match against Bangladesh in December 2024.

The recent incident took place on Friday, the opening day of the second Test against India, during the 29th over India’s first innings, when Seales fielded the ball on his follow-through and threw it at batter Yashaswi Jaiswal, hitting him on the pads.

Seales contested the sanction proposed by Andy Pycroft of the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees, so a formal hearing was required.

The Windies pacer contested that he threw the ball while attempting a run out. The Match Referee, referring to replay clips showing the incident from different angles, concluded that the throw was unnecessary and inappropriate, hitting the batter on the pads when he was within the crease.

On-field umpires Richard Illingworth and Paul Reiffel, third umpire Alex Wharf and fourth umpire K.N. Ananthapadmanabhan levelled the charge.

Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand, a maximum penalty of 50 per cent of a player’s match fee, and one or two demerit points.

West Indies are currently trailing 1-0 in the two-match ICC World Test Championship series in India, following the loss by an innings and 140 runs in Ahmedabad in the first Test.

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