Pakistan fast bowler Haris Rauf and Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav were among the players punished by the International Cricket Council for their unsavoury behaviour during the T20 Asia Cup in the UAE in September.
Rauf received a two-match suspension for breaching the ICC's code of conduct. India captain Suryakumar and Jasprit Bumrah as well as Pakistan's Sahibzada Farhan also committed the same offence of breaching article 2.21 of the ICC's code of conduct, which relates to “conduct that brings the game into disrepute”.
India and Pakistan met three times during the Asia Cup. India defeated their rivals in all three matches, including the final in Dubai.
There was tension ahead of the Asia Cup because of the four-day conflict between the nations in May. The world champions first refused to shake hands with their opponents, which kicked off a chain of unfortunate events.
Pakistan pacer Rauf made inflammatory and war related gestures towards the crowd while Suryakumar dedicated the win over Pakistan in the first match to the Indian armed forces.
At the end of the tournament, relations between the teams had deteriorated beyond repair and India refused to accept the trophy from Mohsin Naqvi, the president of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and also Pakistan's interior minister.
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India's Tilak Varma hit a brilliant fifty at the Dubai International Stadium to guide his team to a five-wicket win over Pakistan in the final of the Asia Cup. All images Chris Whiteoak / The National -
Tilak Varma celebrates the Asia Cup win over Pakistan with teammates in Dubai -
Tilak Varma remained unbeaten to anchor a tense chase in Dubai -
Tilak Varma scored an unbeaten 69 as India defeated Pakistan by five wickets to win the Asia Cup at the Dubai International Stadium -
Pakistan's Faheem Ashraf celebrates the wicket of Shubman Gill -
Shaheen Afridi after taking the wicket of India captain Suryakumar Yadav cheaply -
India's Kuldeep Yadav finished with four wickets to help bowl Pakistan out for just 146 in the Asia Cup final -
Jasprit Bumrah celebrates the wicket of Pakistan's Haris Rauf at the Dubai International Stadium -
India's Jasprit Bumrah rattles the stumps of Pakistan's Haris Rauf -
Pakistan's Hussain Talat fell to the left-arm spin of Axar Patel -
Sahibzada Farhan, left, and Fakhar Zaman gave Pakistan a superb start -
Pakistan's Fakhar Zaman on his way to 57 off 38 balls which included five fours and three sixes -
India's Jasprit Bumrah takes the catch to dismiss Pakistan's Saim Ayub for 14 -
Both teams line-up for the national anthems before the match -
Pakistand and India fans before the final at Dubai International Stadium -
An fan pays homage to India great MS Dhoni -
Pakistan fans at Dubai International Stadium -
India fans at Dubai International Stadium
The ICC ruled both Rauf and Suryakumar would forfeit 30 per cent of their match fee and receive two demerit points.
Rauf accumulated four demerit points from two separate offences during Pakistan’s games against India on September 14 and 28.
Rauf didn’t accept the charge on both occasions and after formal hearings the sanctions were handed out. If a player accumulates four demerit points within a 24-month period, a two-match suspension automatically comes into effect.
Subsequently, Rauf missed the opening ODI of the three-match series against South Africa on Tuesday, which Pakistan narrowly won by two wickets.
The verdicts follow an unsavoury sequence of events. Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha had said that the Indian players’ decision to not shake hands was against the spirit of the game. However, captain Suryakumar had defended his team’s decision, saying some things were “bigger than sportsman’s spirit”.
Pakistan had blamed match referee Andy Pycroft for barring the players from shaking hands. That led to Pakistan nearly pulling out of the tournament before they eventually went ahead with a group game against the UAE after hectic negotiations.
The Asia Cup saga could yet rumble on into future competitions. The T20 World Cup next year takes place in India and Sri Lanka. While Pakistan are scheduled to play all their matches in Sri Lanka, it is not clear what happens if they advance to the semi-finals and final, and face India.
Pakistan have made it clear they will not travel to India, which could mean another impasse between the rivals.
