When Heinrich Klaasen Breached IPL Code Of Conduct For SRH

image-lqdhtjpeHeinrich Klaasen during IPL 2023 (IPLT20.COM)

Heinrich Klaasen, having made his IPL debut back in 2018, received his first major crack at the premier T20 tournament through the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) camp in 2023. While the franchise, under fellow South African Aiden Markram’s leadership, finished at the bottom of the points table, Klaasen emerged as the linchpin of his team’s struggling batting line-up.

The Proteas wicketkeeper-batsman bludgeoned 448 runs across 12 IPL 2023 innings at an astonishing strike-rate of over 177. Unfortunately for the cricketer, he also endured his share of controversies as he was found breaching the IPL Code of Conduct at one stage of the competition.

When Heinrich Klaasen breached IPL Code of Conduct

SRH hosted the Lucknow Super Giants in Hyderabad in one of their final set of IPL 2023 fixtures on May 13. After winning the toss and opting to bat first, middle-overs stalwart Heinrich Klaasen once again took the run-scoring charge by bashing 47 runs from just 29 balls to push his side to a competitive 182-6 by the end of their 20 overs.

While he was batting alongside Abdul Samad in the penultimate over of the innings, LSG speedster Avesh Khan sent down a high-end full toss to the latter of the two SRH batters, and the delivery was subsequently adjudged as ‘no-ball’ by the square-leg umpire.

image-lqdhw5uiThe ball that created controversy (IPLT20.COM)

However, LSG skipper Krunal Pandya decided to review the call and upon much inspection and television replays, third umpire Yeshwant Barde overturned the decision in favor of the bowling team.

An unruly crowd behavior at Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium followed the incident while Heinrich Klaasen himself criticized the umpire’s decision during the mid-innings break. While speaking with the IPL 2023 official broadcasters, the South African star said:

“Disappointed with the crowd to be honest, that’s not what you want. That also broke the momentum, not great umpiring either.”

Klaasen was subsequently reprimanded for his criticism over umpiring, and was fined 10 percent of his match fees after admitting to the Level 1 offence under Article 2.7 of the IPL Code of Conduct. As per the article, the players are prohibited of making public criticism/inappropriate comment during matches.

SRH also lost the contest as LSG chased down their 183-run target in the final over with seven wickets to spare.