Mumbai/Dubai: Miffed by the Judicial Commissioner’s verdict pronouncing England’s pace spearhead James Anderson not guilty in the altercation with Ravindra Jadeja, the BCCI wants the ICC to appeal against the ruling which it finds “totally wrong”.
The BCCI was left red-faced after Judicial Commissioner Gordon Lewis found both Anderson and Jadeja not guilty of breaching ICC code of conduct during the Trent Bridge Test after a marathon six-hour hearing on August 1.
BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel shot off a mail to ICC CEO David Richardson late last night asking him to appeal against the verdict. “I have written a letter last night to ICC CEO David Richardson to file an appeal against the verdict which all of us, including the team management, feel totally wrong and in violation of the particular process. Let’s see what happens,” Patel told PTI here today. “We, in BCCI, cannot appeal against the verdict, only the ICC can and hence I have written the letter to Richardson and I am confident a decision will be taken within the next 48 hours,” Patel said.
“How can he (Anderson) be pronounced not guilty after having admitted that he had pushed Jadeja. According to me so many laws in the ICC Code of Conduct had been violated in this particular process,” Patel added. There is, however, no video footage of the alleged physical altercation between the duo during lunch break of the Trent Bridge Test available to substantiate the Indians’ complaint.
The International Cricket Council, on its part, said it has received the Judicial Commissioner’s detailed report on the altercation and was considering its future course of action.
“The ICC confirms that it has received and is considering the written decision of His Honor Gordon Lewis AM, the Judicial Commissioner, in respect of his findings that England’s James Anderson and Ravindra Jadeja of India were not guilty of breaching the ICC Code of Conduct and Player Support Personnel, following an exhaustive disciplinary hearing which was held in Southampton on Friday,” the ICC said in a statement.
As per Section 8.3.2 of the ICC Code of Conduct, ICC Chief Executive David Richardson has seven days – until Sunday, August 10 – to consider whether to lodge an appeal against the decision.
“The ICC will make no further comment on this matter until the decision has been made,” the statement said. Richardson, who was on leave, has resumed his duties at the ICC headquarters in Dubai and is learnt to have consulted his legal team on the matter. In case Richardson appeals, a three-member panel will be formed from the members of the ICC Code of Ethics committee. The three-member panel might take upto 30 days (as per ICC constitution) to give a verdict which would allow Anderson to play the entire Test series.
Anderson was accused of pushing and abusing Jadeja during the second day of the first Test at Trent Bridge on July 10. England had also pressed for a Level 2 charge against Jadeja as a counter move.
Match referee David Boon, however, downgraded it to a level 1 offence and docked Jadeja 50 percent of his match fee.
Although it is an non-appealable offence, the Indians appealed against the verdict and the ICC accepted the plea. (PTI)