Ali Khan banned for two matches after breach of ICC code

Fast bowler Ali Khan has been banned for the United States' next two games for a Level 1 breach of the ICC Code of Conduct. The one demerit point it incurred has seen his accumulated demerit points add up to four in a 24-month period, triggering an automatic suspension.

Khan committed the offence during USA's World Cup Qualifier Play-off match against Jersey in Windhoek on Tuesday.

Khan was found to have breached Article 2.5 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to "using language, actions or gestures which disparage or which could provoke an aggressive reaction from a batter upon his/her dismissal during an International Match." He was fined 15% of his match fee. He had earlier received three demerit points for two separate incidents during a T20I game against Bermuda in November 2021 during the ICC T20 World Cup Qualifier Americas Final in Antigua.

His team-mate Jasdeep Singh and Jersey's Elliot Miles were also penalised for a Level 1 breach. Singh was handed two demerit points and stripped of 30% of his match fee in line with Article 2.12 of the Code, which deals with "inappropriate physical contact with a Player, Player Support Personnel, Umpire, Match Referee or any other person (including a spectator) during an International Match."

The incidents occurred after the fall of the ninth and 10th wickets, both taken by Khan, at the conclusion of Jersey's chase. Khan ended with figures of 7 for 32, the best ever by an Associate pace bowler in men's ODIs, but tensions which were extremely heated between the two sides throughout the match finally boiled over as multiple players from both sides engaged in a series of confrontations.

Singh's incident took place after Jersey's Julius Sumerauer was bowled by Khan in the 46th over to put USA on the cusp of victory. Further verbals continued as Miles arrived the the middle as the last man in for Jersey. After Khan bowled Miles in the 48th over to secure a 25-run victory for USA, Khan came to a stop just a few feet away from Miles and gestured a sendoff.

Miles was fined 15% of his match fee and had one demerit point docked for the use of an audible obscenity.

All three players admitted their offences and accepted the sanctions, and as such no formal hearings were required.

For USA, the pair of sanctions against Khan and Singh means that they have now accumulated a total of 16 reprimands since the ICC's points demerit system for code of conduct breaches came into play in 2016. It is comfortably the most of any Associate country in that timespan, six more than Oman and UAE. Jersey have accumulated eight reprimands in that same stretch, tied for fourth most of any Associate country.

USA and Jersey are also the only Associate countries to have a player with three separate reprimands as well. Aside from Khan registering his third penalty, Sumerauer has been written up for three separate incidents, though unlike Khan, each of his incidents have been level one infractions which have not added up to a suspension.