The throw that earned Ravindra Jadeja a one-match ban

The Indian team won the Colombo Test against Sri Lanka to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series with the last match to be played at Pallekele. But they will not be able to field their spin-twin in the game as all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has been suspended from taking part in the game. Jadeja crossed the four demerits limit in 24 months and that earned him a suspension.

From the top, the Sri Lanka vs India series has been just about clean cricket. Neither the hosts nor the visitors have opted to verbal spats or sledging to get under the skin of the opposition and crossed the line. But one throw from Jadeja was deemed too dangerous by the umpires that he was handed three demerits by the Match referee. That coupled with the three he already had from 2016 got him in the line of fire, since four demerits in 24 months mean a one-match suspension.

Jaddu was bowling the 58th over of the innings; the man facing him was Milinda Pushpakumara. He pushed the ball back towards the bowler and the left-arm spinner who is an instinctive fielder, arguably the best in the team and around the world threw it back towards the keeper despite being aware that the batsman hadn’t left the crease. It was a flat almost underarm throw and he got it wrong.

Pushpakumara was quick to realize he was in the range of the throw and just moved aside. It was a bullet and as the Indian wicketkeeper, Wriddhiman Saha got his hand in to stop the ball, he took a hit. The on-field umpires Bruce Oxenford and Rod Tucker took a note of the incident and ensured Jadeja was punished for it.

The match referee found him guilty of having breached the article 2.2.8 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Player and Player Support Personnel, which states “throwing a ball (or any other item of cricket equipment such as a water bottle) at or near a Player, Player Support Personnel, Umpire, Match Referee or any other third person in an inappropriate and/or dangerous manner during an International Match”.

A look at the video and it doesn’t look like an offence rather a usual throw that just was in the wrong direction. The umpires and match referee have off late been criticized for their intolerant stand to negligible mistakes as South African fast bowler Kagiso Rabada was just a week ago suspended from the third Test against England.

Watch the video here