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Fight With Rizwan Goes Unpunished; ICC Fines Klaasen For Another Shameful Act In 2nd ODI

Bhargav Dixit

Heinrich Klaasen runs between the stumps. [Source: @ProteasMenCSA/X]Heinrich Klaasen runs between the stumps. [Source: @ProteasMenCSA/X]

South Africa wicket-keeper batter Heinrich Klaasen has remained busy in the first two ODIs against Pakistan in Paarl and Cape Town respectively. Apart from scoring two hard-hitting half-centuries, both of which deserved to get converted into centuries, Klaasen also got involved in an altercation and performed another act which has handed him a punishment.

As far as the heated argument is concerned, Klaasen was involved in one with Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan after the completion of the 26th over at the SuperSport Park. While the exact reason remains unknown, it is reported that the right-handed batter wasn’t pleased with something Pakistan pacer Haris Rauf said to him during the over. As a result, he and Rizwan had a go at each other before being interrupted by the umpires and former Pakistan captain Babar Azam.

Why Was Heinrich Klaasen Punished In Cape Town ODI?

It is to be noted that Klaasen wasn’t reprimanded because of the aforementioned incident. The 33-year-old player lost $180 (15% of $1,200, ODI match fee of South African cricketers) for kicking the stumps in disappointment after getting out on what became the last ball of the match.

Found guilty by on-field umpires Alex Wharf and Lubabalo Gcuma, third umpire Nitin Menon, and fourth umpire Allahuddien Palekar, Klaasen accepted match referee Richie Richardson’s sanction.

"One demerit point has also been added to his disciplinary record for violating Article 2.2 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to 'abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment or fixtures and fittings during an International Match'," the ICC said in a statement.

It all happened on the first delivery of the 44th over when Klaasen’s pull off Pakistan pacer Naseem Shah carried straight to batter Irfan Khan’s hands. Coming in to bat at No. 5 in the 17th over of a 330-run chase, Klaasen was the main reason behind the Proteas being able to bat till the third powerplay.

With no major contribution from the lower-order, Klaasen’s one-man show, a stunning one at that, saw him scoring 97 (74) with the help of eight fours and four sixes. All but kicked out of the match from a much earlier stage, Klaasen’s remarkable effort reduced the deficit to 81 runs for the hosts.