Jadeja fined 50 percent match fee for Anderson incident

Dubai/Mumbai, July 25 (IANS) India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has been found guilty of Level 1 breach of the ICC Code of Conduct by match referee David Boon and fined 50 percent of his match fee for his involvement in an incident with England's James Anderson during the second day of the first cricket Test in Nottingham July 10.

Jadeja, according to an ICC statement Friday, was found guilty of a Level 1 breach of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel which is non-appealable. All Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand and a maximum penalty of 50 percent of a player's match fee.

Boon, at a hearing Thursday evening in Southampton, found Jadeja not guilty of the offence which he was originally charged with -- a level 2 breach -- but found him guilty under Article 2.1.8 that relates to 'conduct contrary to the spirit of the game'.

Meanwhile, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said they were not satisfied with the verdict and expressed support for the left-arm spinner.

"The BCCI wishes to make it clear that it is not satisfied with the verdict. The BCCI reserves its right to appeal against the sentence. The BCCI believes that Ravindra Jadeja was not at fault and supports him fully," BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel Friday said.

The southpaw was reported for a breach of Article 2.2.11 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel by England team manager Phil Neale July 16 for his alleged altercation with Anderson after they had left the field for lunch.

Under the code, Boon held a hearing in Southampton Thursday, which was attended by both the players, their legal counsels, witnesses as well as BCCI's M.V. Sridhar, Neale and Paul Downton of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and ICC's Ethics and Regulatory lawyer.

The hearing lasted nearly two hours and 30 minutes and included oral statements by the players, video footage and cross-examination of the witnesses by Kendrah Potts, counsel representing the ECB, and Jonathan Ellis, who represented Jadeja.

"I had to be comfortably satisfied that the offence had occurred in order to find Jadeja guilty of an offence under Article 2.2.11. While I was in no doubt that confrontation did occur and that such conduct was not in the spirit of the game and should not have taken place, I was not comfortably satisfied that this was a level 2 offence," Boon said.

"Therefore, in exercising my discretion under Article 7.6.5 of the code and having heard all the evidence, I was comfortably satisfied that Jadeja had committed a level 1 offence under Article 2.1.8 of the code."

Boon will provide his detailed judgement within the next 48 hours.

In accordance with Article 8.1 of the Code, a decision in respect of a first Level 1 offence is non-appealable and shall remain the full and final decision in relation to the matter.

Meanwhile, Anderson's hearing will be held Aug 1 and will be conducted by Judicial Commissioner Gordon Lewis.

Anderson has been charged by India manager Sunil Dev under Level 3, Article 2.3.3 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which states: "Where the facts of the alleged incident are not adequately or clearly covered by any of the above offences, conduct that either: (a) is contrary to the spirit of the game; or (b) brings the game into disrepute."

All Level 3 breaches carry a penalty of between four and eight Suspension Points. Two suspension points result in a ban of one Test, or two ODIs, depending on which type of match is scheduled next for the suspended player.