Arshdeep Singh has been fined 15% of his match fee and received one demerit point following an on-field incident involving Daryl Mitchell during the ICC Men's T20 World Cup final played in Ahmedabad.
The disciplinary action was taken after the Indian fast bowler breached Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct. The violation relates to Article 2.9, which concerns throwing a ball or any piece of cricket equipment at or near a player in a manner that could be considered inappropriate or potentially dangerous during an international match.
The incident happened in the 11th over of New Zealand’s chase while they were pursuing a huge target of 256 runs. During his follow-through, Arshdeep fielded the ball and threw it towards the stumps, but the throw struck Mitchell on his pads instead. Initially, the bowler walked back to his bowling mark without apologising, which appeared to frustrate Mitchell, who then approached him.
India captain Suryakumar Yadav stepped in to calm the situation, while umpire Richard Illingworth also spoke briefly with Arshdeep. Shortly after the over ended, the Indian bowler apologised to Mitchell for the incident.
After the match, Arshdeep clarified that the throw was not intentional. He explained that the ball unexpectedly reversed direction and accidentally hit Mitchell, which prompted him to apologise immediately afterwards.
A video later shared by New Zealand national cricket team on social media showed Arshdeep apologising once again to Mitchell, and the two players were seen shaking hands in a friendly gesture.
The charge was officially laid by on-field umpires Alex Wharf and Illingworth, along with third umpire Allahuddien Paleker and fourth umpire Adrian Holdstock.
This was Arshdeep’s first disciplinary offence within the last 24 months. Under ICC regulations, Level 1 breaches can result in penalties ranging from an official warning to a fine of up to 50% of a player’s match fee, along with one or two demerit points.