India Women captain Harmanpreet Kaur is BANNED for two games
India Women captain Harmanpreet Kaur is BANNED for two games after she smashed stumps with her bat in frustration when she was dismissed and then called the umpiring ‘pathetic’ in fiery Bangladesh tie
- Harmanpreet Kaur smashed her stumps after she was out against Bangladesh
- The India captain labelled the standard of umpiring ‘pathetic’ following the game
- Kaur has now been banned for two matches as a result of her angry behaviour
India Women captain Harmanpreet Kaur has been banned for two matches as a result of her behaviour during their game with Bangladesh last Saturday.
The ODI ended in a thrilling tie but all anyone could talk about was the behaviour by superstar Kaur – who has also been handed four demerit points and a fine of 75 per cent of her match fee for two breaches of the ICC code of conduct.
The series between the two teams was tied after they won one game each in the three-match encounter, with the third game being hugely controversial.
After Bangladesh posted 225 for four from their 50 overs, India levelled the score at 225 for nine before a lazy shot from Megna Singh saw them bowled out, and the match was subsequently tied.
But the game will only now be remembered for Kaur after her behaviour during and after the game.
Harmanpreet Kaur has been banned for two games after her behaviour against Bangladesh
After being dismissed for 14 in the run chase, the Indian captain was absolutely furious
The India captain was dismissed for 14 in the run chase, given out caught at slip as she attempted to sweep the ball. She clearly didn’t agree with the decision, lingering on the pitch and staring at the umpire, before wheeling around and smashing her stumps with her bat.
Kaur then unleashed a stunning attack on the umpires, who she labelled ‘pathetic’ in an all-time rant after the game.
When she was dismissed she continued to remonstrate with the umpires after walking off the field, and made it clear just what she felt of them post-match in an astonishing interview on the field for the presentation ceremony.
‘A lot of learning from this game. Even apart from the cricket, the type of umpiring that was happening there, we were very surprised,’ Kaur had said.
‘The next time whenever we are coming to Bangladesh, we’ll have to make sure we have to deal with this kind of umpiring and accordingly, we’ll have to prepare ourselves.
‘Some pathetic umpiring was done, and we are really disappointed about some decisions given by the umpires.’
Not satisfied at the end of her strong comments towards what she perceived as biased umpiring, Kaur then shouted ‘bring the umpires too’ as the Bangladeshi players posed for a photo, insinuating the officials were part of the side.
Nigar Sultana, Bangladesh’s captain, then led the players off the field, slamming Kaur for ruining what should have been a celebration of the tightly-fought series and incredible tie.
Kaur went onto smash her stumps, before slamming the umpires after the game as ‘pathetic’
On her way off the pitch, she remonstrated with the officials and then later doubled down
‘It is totally her (Kaur) problem. I have nothing to do with it. As a player, she could have shown better manners,’ she said after the match.
‘I can’t tell you what happened, but it didn’t feel right to be there [for the photograph] with my team. It wasn’t the right environment. That’s why we went back. Cricket is a game of discipline and respect.’
‘The umpires wouldn’t give her out if she wasn’t out. We had umpires from men’s international cricket, so they were good umpires. What are they [India] going to say about the caught or run-out dismissals [of which there were six]?
‘We have respected their decisions. The umpire’s decision is the final decision, whether I like it or not.’
When opening batter Smriti Mandhana was given a chance to reflect on Kaur’s words in the official post-match press conference, she doubled down on the accusations levelled at the umpires and said her reaction was perfectly reasonable.
‘I think she [Kaur] wasn’t really happy with the decision given and she felt she wasn’t out… it is just the heat of the moment and nothing much,’ she said.
‘What happened in the middle is a part and parcel of the game. We’ve seen these incidents so much in the past as well.
‘In any match, sometimes it happens that you are really not happy with the [decisions]. Especially when there is no DRS in a match in a series of this kind, we kind of expect a little better level of umpiring in terms of some decisions.
Bangladesh skipper Nigar Sultana (left) was fuming with Kaur’s behaviour after the match
But, Smriti Mandhana backed Kaur’s claims of the umpires being biased towards Bangladesh
‘It was very evident that there was not even a second thought given when the ball was hitting the pad when our batters were batting. There was not even one second of thought given before the finger went up.
‘I am sure the ICC, BCB and BCCI will have more of a discussion on that and maybe we can have a neutral-umpiring system from maybe next time so that we don’t sit here having these discussions and maybe we can focus more on cricket and cricket-oriented questions.’
Fans all across the cricketing world, including those of the Indian side, could not believe what they had heard, slamming the Indian side in the strongest terms possible.
‘Shameful to Indian cricket’, wrote one Indian fan, with another commenting: ‘Harmanpreet Kaur’s behaviour was disgusting and stupid she should be punished for at least three to five matches’.
‘Whatever the decision is, how is this acceptable on cricket field? What message is this giving to young boys and girls watching this sport? Deserves a ban. Ridiculous!’ said a third.
‘At least, don’t take the credit away from Bangladesh, they were phenomenal and won fairly. Please don’t be salty,’ commented a fourth, with another writing: ‘Ridiculous behavior. This, and her post match comments should hand her a match ban at the very least. Poor sportsmanship.’
One fan said the decision itself didn’t even matter, right or wrong – the reaction and comments were simply a poor way to go about it.
‘Acting like a spoilt brat. Life isn’t always fair. It’s how you deal with those moments that matter,’ the fan wrote.
Kaur was the the centre of another debate over sportsmanship last summer when India visited England.
In the final match of the one-day series between the sides, India bowler Deepti Sharma executed a ‘Mankad’ dismissal at the non-striker’s end with England’s Charlie Dean out of her crease.
The controversial wicket handed India a 16-run win, but the manner of the final dismissal was labelled ‘absolutely pathetic’ by Piers Morgan.
Kaur wholeheartedly defended Sharma’s actions, though, who later insisted she had repeatedly warned Dean about going out of her crease, a claim denied by England skipper Heather Knight.
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