In a double whammy to Mohammad Rizwan's side, ICC has punished Pakistan team for maintaining slow over rate during their third ODI against New Zealand. For the third ODI in a row, Pakistan have been slapped with a fine for the slow over rate. This time around, the Mohammad Rizwan's Pakistan have to cough up five percent of their match fee after the third ODI against New Zealand.
Pakistan Team fined for slow over rate in 3rd ODI against NZ
The match in question took place at Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui, and unfortunately for Pakistan, it was a day to forget. Not only did they suffer a 43-run defeat, which culminated in a 0-3 series whitewash against New Zealand, but they also fell foul of the ICC's rules regarding over rates.
Pakistan was found to have violated Article 2.22 of the ICC Code of Conduct, which deals with minimum over-rate offenses. The penalty for this is a five percent fine of each player's match fee for every over they bowled short within the allotted time. Since Pakistan was one over behind, the match referee, Jeff Crowe, issued the sanction based on the report from the on-field umpires Chris Brown and Paul Reiffel, as well as the third umpire Michael Gough and fourth umpire Wayne Knights.
Since skipper Mohammad Rizwan admitted to the slow over rate offense, there wasn't any need for a formal hearing to take place.
Looking back at the three-match ODI series against New Zealand, it's fair to say it was a disappointing stretch for the team led by Mohammad Rizwan. Following a 4-1 loss in the T20I series, there were hopes for a stronger showing in the ODIs. It all started with Pakistan's 73-run defeat against New Zealand in the series opener, and the troubles continued in the subsequent matches. The second ODI saw them fall short by 84 runs.
This series loss comes on the heels of an early exit in the group stage of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, adding to their recent struggles in the white-ball format. Pakistan players will now shift their focus on the upcoming PSL 2025 which is set to start from April 11