ODI World Cup 2023: Pakistan players get slapped with 20% match fee fine, find out the cause

Amidst the struggling performance of the Pakistan cricket team in the ongoing ODI World Cup, their campaign has suffered another setback with a 20% match fee penalty imposed for a slow over-rate during their match against South Africa on Friday. This penalty comes as a major blow to their already challenging journey in the tournament.

The apex cricket body announced the fine on Saturday, October 28, stating that Pakistan had fallen short by four overs during South Africa‘s batting innings when considering time allowances. This violation resulted in a 20% deduction from the team’s match fee. Babar Azam, the captain of the Pakistan side, now faces the task of rallying his team to overcome this setback and refocus on their remaining matches.

“On-field umpires Alex Wharf and Paul Reiffel, third umpire Richard Illingworth, and fourth umpire Richard Kettleborough levelled the charge after Pakistan’s loss to South Africa. And Pakistan captain Babar Azam accepted the sanction,” the apex cricket body said in an official media release.

Pakistan have lost 4 consecutive matches in ODI World Cup 2023

In the lead-up to the ODI World Cup, Pakistan was considered one of the favourites to reach the semi-finals, with some experts even predicting a potential final appearance. However, the team’s performance in the tournament has been far from ideal, leaving their fans disappointed.

Pakistan commenced their campaign with convincing victories over the Netherlands and Sri Lanka. Still, the team’s fortunes took a drastic downturn as they faced defeats at the hands of cricketing giants India and Australia. However, the shocker came when they were defeated by Afghanistan, completing a disheartening hat-trick of losses. Their struggles continued as they narrowly lost a nail-biter to South Africa on October 27 in Chennai.

And now. the slow over-rate fine has added to the pressure on Babar Azam and his squad as they find themselves rolling on the brink of elimination from the competition. With matches remaining, the Men in Green will need to regroup, focus on their strengths, and work on their shortcomings to salvage their ODI World Cup campaign.