Pakistan skipper Misbah-ul-Haq has been suspended from first Test, to be held at Galle from Friday against Sri Lanka, after his side was found guilty of a serious over-rate offence during the fifth and final ODI against the Island nation at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
The Pakistan side was ruled to be three overs short of its target at the end of the match when time allowances were taken into consideration.
As this was Pakistan's first serious over-rate offence in the past 12 months, Chris Broad of the Elite Panel of ICC Match Referees handed Misbah two suspension points while each of his players received a 40 per cent fine (10 per cent for each of the first two overs and 20 per cent for the additional over), as required by Appendix 2 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel which deals with minimum over rate requirements, calculations, reporting, disciplinary process and sanctions.
According to Articles 7.4.1 and 7.5.3 of the Code, the imposition of two suspension points means that Misbah will now miss Pakistan's first Test since such suspension points are to be applied to the subsequent international matches in which Misbah is most likely to participate on a chronological basis immediately following the announcement of the decision.
The offence is contrary to Article 2.5.2 of the Code which relates to serious over-rate offences only and reads: "where the actual over rate in any Test match or any other international match of at least four days in duration is more than five overs short of the minimum over rate, or, in any ODI, Twenty20 International or any other international match of fifty (50) or twenty (20) overs per side, is more than two overs short of the Minimum Over Rate, such an offence shall be considered a 'Serious Over Rate Offence'."
The charge was laid by on-field umpires Paul Reiffel and the home country umpire Ranmore Martinesz, both from the International Panel of ICC Umpires, as well as third umpire Ruchira Palliyaguruge and fourth umpire Nilan de Silva.
Misbah pleaded guilty and the subsequent penalties were accepted without the need for a formal hearing.
