The International Cricket Council (ICC) has penalised Pakistan batter Gull Feroza following an on-field reaction during her team's Women's Asia Cup Group A encounter with Hong Kong in Dubai. Feroza was docked 10 per cent of her match fee and issued a single demerit point after match officials cited her for violating the governing body's code of conduct.
ICC punishes Gull Feroza for breaching Code of Conduct
The disciplinary action stems from a specific violation of Article 2.8, which strictly prohibits players and support staff from expressing public disagreement with an umpire's call during international competition. The moment occurred in the fifth over of Pakistan's batting stint after the official ruled Feroza out leg-before-wicket. Unhappy with the call, the batter gestured toward her equipment to suggest she had gotten an inside edge on the ball, triggering the official reprimand and financial penalty.
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Feroza's second offence in two years
This latest infraction represents Feroza's second code violation in a two-year window, pushing her overall total to two demerit points. Her initial demerit point was issued following a separate incident during Pakistan's Women's T20 World Cup clash against Australia.A formal hearing was ultimately avoided after the batter pleaded guilty to the charge and accepted the penalty put forward by Supriya Rani Das of the Emirates ICC International Panel of Match Referees.
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The official charge was jointly submitted by on-field umpires Rokeya Sultana and Rabab Ahsan, supported by third umpire Shivani Mishra and fourth umpire Shathira Jakir. Under ICC regulations, a Level 1 breach carries sanctions ranging from a formal reprimand up to a maximum 50 per cent match fee deduction, accompanied by one or two demerit points. These points remain active on a cricketer's record for a rolling 24-month period. If a player accumulates four or more demerit points within that window, they are converted into suspension points; receiving two suspension points results in an automatic ban from one Test match, two ODIs, or two T20Is—whichever format occurs first on the team's schedule.