In a major blow for the Delhi Capitals, captain Rishabh Pant has been handed a fine and has been suspended for one match due to a breach in IPL's Code of Conduct. Pant has been hit with this punishment following his team's slow-over rate in their game against Rajasthan Royals on May 7.
"Mr Rishabh Pant, Captain, Delhi Capitals has been fined has been fined and suspended for one match for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct after his team maintained a slow over-rate during Match 56 of the TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 against Rajasthan Royals at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi on May 07, 2024," the IPL governing council said in a statement.
This was his team's third offence in the ongoing season relating to minimum over rates. This called for Pant to be fined Rs 30 lakh and get suspended for one game. Notably, the other players of the Playing XI and the Impact player have also been handed a fine.
"As it was his team’s third offence of the season under the IPL’s Code of Conduct relating to minimum over-rate offences, Rishabh Pant was fined INR 30 Lac and suspended for one match. The rest of the members of the Playing XI, including the Impact Player, were each individually fined either INR 12 Lac or 50 per cent of their respective match fees, whichever is lesser," the body added.
Pant will not be part of DC's match against RCB
Notably, Pant will not be part of DC's clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on May 12 at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru. The Capitals are still in contention to reach the playoffs as they have 12 points from 12 matches. They need to win both of their matches to stand a realistic chance to qualify for the playoffs. DC have another crucial clash against Lucknow Super Giants on May 14 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi which is set to a virtual knockout if one place will be up for grabs.
Notably the Capitals challenged Match referee's ruling which was then then referred to the BCCI Ombudsman for review. However after conducting a virtual hearing, the ombudsman affirmed that the match referee's ruling was the final one.
"As per Article 8 of the IPL Code of Conduct, the Delhi Capitals filed an appeal challenging the ruling of the Match Referee. Following this, the appeal was referred to the BCCI Ombudsman for review. The Ombudsman conducted a virtual hearing and affirmed that the decision of the Match Referee remains final and binding," the statement further read.