Alex Hales ‘deserves fine’, says England coach
PHOTO: REUTERS
LONDON: England assistant coach Paul Farbrace said opener Alex Hales “deserves his fine” after the opener was punished for dissent during the ongoing fourth Test against Pakistan at The Oval.
Hales went into the third umpire’s room after being given out for six on Thursday’s first day when he clipped Mohammad Amir and Yasir Shah, diving forward in front of the square leg umpire, claimed a low catch.
England cricketers vent frustration over Hales’ dismissal
Hales initially stood his ground and on-field umpires Marais Erasmus and Bruce Oxenford called on television umpire Joel Wilson for assistance.
After several minutes studying seemingly inconclusive pictures, West Indian official Wilson decided there was not enough evidence to overturn his on-field colleagues ‘soft signal’ of out and Hales had to go, with England 23 for one in the seventh over.
Hales shook his head as he walked off but an International Cricket Council statement issued Friday said he had been punished for his conduct towards Wilson after he had left the field.
With no hope of getting the verdict reversed, Hales took the extraordinary action of going into the third umpire’s room and then, in the words of an ICC statement, “questioned the decision”.
England’s Alex Hales fined for dissent
The ICC added: “He also made some inappropriate comments as he was leaving the room.”
Hales was fined 15 percent of his match fee, a punishment equating to £1,500 ($1,947, 1,739 euros), by match referee Richie Richardson, the former West Indies captain, for breaching the ICC code of conduct clause related to “showing dissent at an umpire’s decision during an international match”.
“He deserves to be fined, we can’t support any player going in and having a crack at third umpire,” Farbrace told reporters after Friday’s second day.
It is understood that Hales will be spoken to by England team management regarding his conduct towards Wilson and his decision to post a tweet showing a photograph of the disputed catch.
“However frustrated he was, it was the wrong thing to do and the ICC have done the right thing today,” said Farbrace. “It’s hard to support that player in that situation.
“You want to see game played fairly, tough exchanges, but players cannot cross the line.”
Tons by Shafiq, Younus help Pakistan edge ahead
Farbrace added: “We would not have advised him (Hales) to go and share his thoughts, it was not the brightest thing to do.
“Mid-game, it’s not the best thing to upset the umpires.
“The last thing you need to do is go in and kick the door off its hinges and tell the third umpire he’s made a mistake — because it’s not going to make any difference, other than to your bank balance.”
This is not the first time this series that Hales has been out of pocket after he gave a partial refund to a spectator who complained about the slow over-rate during England’s 141-run win in the third Test at Edgbaston.
Pakistan ended the second day at The Oval on 340 for six, 12 runs in front following England’s first innings 328 all out.
England lead the four-match series 2-1.
Original news : http://tribune.com.pk/story/1161546/alex-hales-deserves-fine-says-england-coach/