Sri Lanka captain Dinesh Chandimal’s appeal over his one-match ban for ball tampering during a Test against the West Indies will be heard on Friday, the International Cricket Council said.
The Chairman of the ICC Code of Conduct Commission Michael Beloff has been appointed to hear the 28-year-old skipper’s appeal, the governing body of the sport said.
“The hearing will take place on Friday and legal counsel for both parties and Mr. Chandimal will join via telephone or videoconference,” the ICC said in a statement.
Chandimal was found guilty of changing the condition of the ball during the second day’s play of the second Test, which concluded in a draw at Gros Islet on Monday.
He was slapped with two suspension points and fined 100 per cent of his match fee. The points equate to a ban from one Test or two ODIs or two T20s.
Following the ruling, Chandimal was set to miss his side’s third Test in Barbados starting Saturday. It was not immediately clear if an outcome of the hearing will be announced before the start of Saturday’s game.
Match referee Javagal Srinath had said Chandimal applied an artificial substance to the ball in violation of the ICC Code of Conduct.
The player was suspected of using saliva and a sweet that he had in his mouth to tamper with the ball and give it more spin. His action was picked up on television images.
Srinath also said that Chandimal had been less than convincing in his defence.
“During the hearing, Dinesh admitted to putting something in his mouth but couldn’t remember what it was, which I found unconvincing as a defence,” he said.
At the time of the incident, Chandimal denied charges filed by on-field umpires Aleem Dar and Ian Gould, and third umpire Richard Kettleborough.
Sri Lanka’s coach Chandika Hathurusingha and manager Asanka Gurusinghe face separate charges of “acting contrary to the spirit of the game” during the ball tampering drama.
There were concerns that the Test match was in jeopardy when Chandimal refused to lead his team onto the field after he was informed of the charge and the application of a five-run penalty.
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