ICC punishes Siraj and Head for their on-field incident

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has punished both the Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj and the Australian batter Travis Head for their involvement in the on-field heated argument during the recently concluded Adelaide Test. 

During the second day of the day-night pink ball Adelaide Test match between Australia and India, when Siraj bowled Head, the Indian pacer had a furious celebration. While Head voiced that, the Indian pacer gave a send-off by gesturing towards the dressing room.

Mohammed Siraj and Travis Head received one demerit point; Siraj also fined

Both Siraj and Head have been punished for that incident. While both have received one demerit point each, the Indian pacer has additionally received a 20% fine of the match fees. It was the first offence for both players within the last 24 months. 

Head has been sanctioned for breaching Article 2.13 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to the “abuse of a player, player support personnel, umpire or match referee during an international match.”

On the other hand, Siraj has breached Article 2.5 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to “using language, actions or gestures which disparage or which could provoke an aggressive reaction from a batter upon dismissal."

Match referee Ranjan Madugalle proposed those sanctions. Both players have admitted their respective offences and accepted the respective sanctions. 

See Also: Harbhajan Singh recalls controversial Sydney 'Monkeygate' Test in 2008

Both gave different views

After the stumps of the second day, Head claimed that he jokingly said to Siraj, 'well bowled'. He also claimed that he was surprised at Siraj's reaction and disappointed with his return reaction. 

However, Siraj had a different claim. The Indian pacer said that Head lied about that incident by claiming his only saying 'well bowled'. According to Siraj, Head started the on-field confrontation by abusing him. 

During the evening of the opening day of the Adelaide Test, frustrated Siraj threw the ball at the batter Marnus Labuschagne for stopping him from delivering the ball at the last moment due to movement at the sight screen.