BIRMINGHAM (Sports Desk) – Pakistan have suffered another setback following their Test series defeat against England after being penalised 11 ICC World Test Championship (WTC) points for maintaining a slow over-rate in the third and final Test at Edgbaston.
Pakistan players were also fined 50 per cent of their match fees after the team was found to be 11 overs short of the required rate once time allowances were taken into consideration.
The sanctions compounded a difficult tour for Pakistan, who lost the Edgbaston Test by eight wickets and were swept 3-0 in the series.
The penalties were imposed by Ranjan Madugalle of the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees after the charge was levelled by on-field umpires Paul Reiffel and Chris Gaffaney, third umpire Allahudien Palekar and fourth umpire Russell Warren.
Under Article 2.22 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, players are fined five per cent of their match fee for every over their team fails to bowl within the allotted time. The maximum fine is capped at 50pc.
World Test Championship playing conditions also impose a penalty of one championship point for every over a team falls short of the required rate.
Pakistan’s 11-over shortfall therefore resulted in the loss of 11 WTC points, leaving the national side ninth in the standings with a points percentage of 4.63.
The penalty adds to Pakistan’s troubles after a difficult three-Test campaign in England.
Pakistan suffered an innings-and-103-run defeat at Headingley in the opening Test before losing the second match at Lord’s by 194 runs.
Those defeats prompted major changes to the squad, with the Pakistan Cricket Board releasing seven players and bringing in five uncapped cricketers — Razaullah, Arafat Minhas, Imran Randhawa, Mohammad Imran Junior and Saad Baig. Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal also returned to the squad.
Changes were also made to the coaching setup. Red-ball coaches Sarfaraz Ahmed and Umar Gul were released, while white-ball coaches Mike Hesson and Ashley Noffke were handed responsibility for the Test side.
The changes, however, could not prevent another defeat at Edgbaston.
England were set a target of 130 in the fourth innings and completed the chase to seal an eight-wicket victory and complete the series sweep.
One of the few positives for Pakistan was the Test debut of fast bowler Razaullah.
The pacer regularly crossed the 140kph mark and claimed four wickets, including that of England batter Joe Root. He also produced an aggressive performance with the bat, smashing 81 from 63 deliveries, including four fours and nine sixes.
Pakistan will next return to World Test Championship action in November when they are scheduled to host Sri Lanka for a two-match Test series in Rawalpindi and Lahore.
The 11-point deduction leaves Pakistan facing an even steeper challenge to improve their position in the WTC standings when the home series begins.
