Australia captain Aaron Finch has been handed a reprimand after he was caught using inappropriate language during the first t20I against England on Sunday. The language was decoded by the stump microphone and was brought to the notice of the math referee who has now given Finch an official warning.
Finch was found to have used inappropriate language during the ninth over of England's innings and in doing so breached the Level 1 ICC Code of Conduct.
The Australia skipper was found to have breached Article 2.3 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to “use of an audible obscenity during an International Match.”
After deliberating with his teammates on whether to call for a review, Finch asked the umpires whether the catch had carried to wicketkeeper Matthew Wade.
The captain wasn’t given an answer by the on-field umpires, leaving him fuming as time ran out on the DRS timer.
“Could have been nice to know inside 15 f***ing seconds,” he vented in comments that were picked up by the stump microphones.
Finch admitted the offence and received an official reprimand and one demerit point was added to his disciplinary record.
While the offence was Finch's first in the last 24 months, the veteran does run the risk of being suspended should further incidents occur during the remainder of the series or at the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
When a player reaches four or more demerit points within a 24-month period, they are converted into suspension points and a player is banned.
Finch will lead Australia in the remaining two T20I against England in Canberra this week, before the reigning champions commence their T20 World Cup campaign against New Zealand in Sydney on October 22.
The first T20I between the arch-rivals was won by England by eight runs as Alex Hales and Jos Buttler were in scintillating form for the visitors. They will next meet on Wednesday at the Manuka oval in Canberra.
