No-ball incident: Pant fined 100% of match fee; Amre handed one-match ban

Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant and assistant coach Pravin Amre were both fined 100% of their match fees, with Amre also handed a one-match ban, following the team's defeat to Rajasthan Royals on Friday. Capitals' pacer Shardul Thakur was also fined 50% of his match fee, for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct.

Pant admitted to the Level 2 offence under Article 2.7 of the IPL Code of Conduct and accepted the sanction, while Thakur admitted to a Level 2 offence under Article 2.8. Amre admitted to the Level 2 offence under Article 2.2.

Friday's game ended in controversial fashion, following the third delivery of the final over of Capitals' chase of Royals' 222, a high full-toss from Obed McCoy, which Rovman Powell pulled for a six. The six was signalled, but Capitals camp expected a no-ball for height too. There was no signal, though, and drama ensued as both Powell and Kuldeep questioned the on-field umpires Nitin Menon and Nikhil Patwardhan.

Pant and the rest of the Capitals dugout, too, were seen gesticulating from the dugout, asking their batters to pursue the argument even though the rules don't allow a no-ball to be referred unless a wicket is being reviewed.

Chaos prevailed as Pant then asked Amre to go in and speak to the umpires. At the same time, Shane Watson, another assistant coach of Capitals, tried to calm Pant down. Jos Buttler, who had hit what turned out to be a match-winning century earlier, also walked up to Pant, seemingly infuriated at Pant's actions. Royals eventually won the match by 15 runs.

Pietersen" 'Coach running on to the field unacceptable'

Former England captain and batter Kevin Pietersen, who was at the Wankhede Stadium working for host broadcaster Star Sports, called Pant and Amre's actions 'unacceptable'. Pietersen pointed out that the controversy might have been nipped in the bud had Capital's coach Ricky Ponting been present in the dugout. Ponting is isolating for five days as he was identified as a close contact after his family member tested positive for Covid-19.

"The behaviour of Delhi here, I don't think that would have happened if Ricky Ponting was there," Pietersen said on the post-match show on Friday. " I don't think that would have happened at all. Jos Butter had every right to walk over to Rishabh Pant and say: "what on earth were you doing?" For them to send one of their coaches, one of their coaches, to actually to go on to the field and think that was right and that was the correct behaviour. We play the gentleman's game. People make mistakes. How many times have we nicked off or not nicked off and given out, given out lbw when we are not lbw."

Pietersen was echoing the sentiment Capitals' assistant coach Shane Watson had said on Friday where he said the umpire's verdict needed to be accepted whether one agreed with it or not.

"When you see stuff like we have just seen now in the last half an hour it is not good for the game of cricket. It's not good at all. I don't think who they are, but that was a mistake. That was a huge, huge mistake. And the biggest mistake was the coach running onto the field to talk to the umpire. I mean I just do not understand the coach, he is a senior figure in those rooms. Rishabh Pant was calling them off, the guy wanted to walk off. For me that was unacceptable, and I hope I never ever see that again in the game of cricket because that is not why we play cricket and that is not how you are supposed to play cricket."