| Scorecard: | India v Australia |
| Player: | G Gambhir |
| Event: | Australia in India 2008/09 |
India opener Gautam Gambhir has received a one Test ban after being found guilty of breaching the ICC Code of Conduct during the third Test against Australia in New Delhi.
As a result, he will miss the final Test of the current series, starting in Nagpur from 6 November.
The player met with Emirates Elite Panel ICC Match Referee Chris Broad on Friday morning before the start of third days play where he was informed of the penalty. The hearing had been adjourned on Thursday evening to allow the match referee to review the evidence.
The player had pleaded guilty to a charge under Rule C1 of the Code (Level 2) which states that players shall at all times conduct play within the spirit of the game.
The incident that led to the charge being laid took place during the 51st over of Indias first innings on day one of the Test match when there was a coming-together of Gambhir and Shane Watson.
Watson was found guilty and fined 10 per cent of his match fee on Thursday for verbally engaging with Gambhir in a manner that was not in keeping with the Spirit of Cricket.
Explaining the decision, Mr Broad said: The decision to find Gambhir guilty of a level 2 offence is indicative of the fact that any degree of physical contact is unacceptable.
Had Gambhir been charged with and found guilty of a charge under 2.4, due to his previous offence, I would have been obliged to impose a minimum penalty of a two-Test match ban. In the view of the umpires, the facts of this case - the lightness of the physical conduct and the element of provocation - would not justify such a penalty.
The umpires accordingly had regard to the notes of the ICC Code of Conduct which provides for a player to be charged under Rule C1 if the circumstances of the alleged incident are not adequately covered by the listed offences.
Whilst I concur with this view, the ICC has repeatedly told the players that deliberate physical contact between players will not be tolerated. I have also taken into account the previous offences of Gambhir and therefore, I am satisfied that the penalty imposed is an appropriate outcome in the circumstances of this matter. I hope Mr Gambhir will learn from this, he said.
Present at the hearing was the player, the match referee, the on-field umpires Billy Bowden and Aleem Dar, third umpire Suresh Shastri and fourth umpire Sameer Bandekar , India coach Gary Kirsten and captain Anil Kumble.
The penalty for a Level 2 offence is a fine of between 50 and 100 per cent of the players match fee and/or a maximum ban of one Test match or two ODIs.
For Level 2 offences players have the right to appeal against an adjudicators decision within 24 hours of notification of that decision.
The full ICC Code of Conduct for Player and Team Officials can be found at www.icc-cricket.com.