New Zealand vs England: Jonny Bairstow handed a demerit point for "audible obscenity" during the 5th T20I

The ongoing England tour of New Zealand is in full flow and keeping in mind with the trend that has dominated the proceedings this year, the final Twenty20 International ended in a tie but this time, we did have a clear winner in the end after the culmination of a six-ball shoot-out. 

And, just like England-New Zealand white-ball encounters, Jonny Bairstow continues to remain in the news. From getting dropped from the Test team to being added as a cover for injured to now being reprimanded for the use of an “audible obscenity during an international match.”, the swashbuckling opener has never been short of headlines.

According to a report published in ESPNCricinfo, the Level 01 offence was levelled at Bairstow following the culmination of the 5th IT20 at Eden Park where the Yorkshireman was picked up by television broadcasters for swearing loudly following his dismissal.

Jonny Bairstow adds another demerit point to his kitty

The accumulation of a demerit point means, Bairstow now has two demerit points,  the first of which he’d received during an ODI against Pakistan in May after he swung his bat at the stumps after his dismissal.  Accumulation of two more demerit points during any two-year period could lead to an automatic suspension.

It was sort of a deja-vu as far as the 2019 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup final back in July was concerned. That game- at the Mecca of cricket- Lord’s- had ended in a tie leading into a super-over. And, more dramatically, the super-over also ended in a tie, leading to England winning the match on the basis of scoring more boundaries in the actual game.

So, when the fifth International Twenty20 headed towards the super-over, eyeballs galore from all over the world as to whether we’ll encounter the same situation. Since that controversial World Cup final, the boundary count rule was scrapped following a furore from all over the world in favour of playing multiple super-overs. However, Chris Jordan ensured that things did not escalate to that extent as he successfully defended 18.

England had to thank opener, Jonny Bairstow, that they even got into the situation of chasing down 147, set by the New Zealanders in 11 overs. The swashbuckling opener smoked an 18-ball 47- an innings which included 2 fours and five sixes.

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