Das-Kumara

Picture Credit: Twitter

After the Super 12 Group B match between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh on Sunday, Lahiru Kumara and Liton Das Kumar were both fined for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel. The two had indulged in an ugly spat during the match at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

Sri Lankan fast bowler was found guilty of breaching Article 2.5 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel. This relates to, "Using language, actions or gestures which disparage, or which could provoke an aggressive reaction from a batter upon his/her dismissal during an International Match."

Meanwhile, Bangladesh opener Liton Das was also found guilty. He was charged under violation of Article 2.20 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel. This relates to "Conduct that is contrary to the spirit of the game."

What exactly happened?

Notably, in the sixth over of the Bangladesh batting innings when Kumara finally broke the partnership of the Bangladesh openers by dismissing Das, the two players got involved in an ugly exchange of angry words as Das was walking off. The animated discussion was not just a passing remark but continued for longer forcing the umpires to intervene as the batter even showed his bat towards the bowler, after being provoked by what the bowler had said to him.

Viewers can find the video of the incident here.

While it is difficult to gauge what the brawl was all about, it might have been about Kumara's throw towards the striker's end where Mohammad Naim was outside after having hit the ball straight to the bowler. As the right-arm fast bowler was aiming for the stumps, the ball was clearly off target and was at an awkward height which forced the batter to duck out of the way of the ball.

Talking about the match, Bangladesh were seemingly the dominant team for a big passage of the match but eventually, Sri Lanka defeated their Asian rivals by 5 wickets to continue their unbeaten run in the tournament so far. Including the Round 1 fixtures, Sri Lanka have played four matches and won all of them in contrast to Bangladesh for whom this was their second defeat in four matches.