Harmanpreet Kaur defended her actions during India’s tour of Bangladesh which earned her a two-match ban.

Kaur was given out caught at slip off Fahima Khatun during India’s third ODI in their three-match series against Bangladesh, at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur.

Unhappy with the decision, she smashed the stumps with a swing off her bat before storming off. The match ended in a tie, and the series finished level at 1-1. After the match, she called the umpiring “pathetic”.

When the cricketers from both teams assembled for the post-match photograph, Kaur asked the Bangladesh side to “bring the umpires too”, hinting at their pro-Bangladesh decisions. Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana Joty responded by asking her team to walk out.

Kaur was given four demerit points – three for dissent (a Level 2 offence), and one for “public criticism” (Level 1) of the officials – and was fined 75 percent of her match fee. Four demerit points accumulated within a 24-month window amounts to a ban from one Test match, two ODIs, or two T20Is.

Since India’s next matches are in the 2023 Asian Games, Kaur – the Indian captain – will miss their first match, a quarterfinal. She will miss the semi-final as well, though she will return for the final – though these are subject to India’s qualification.

Kaur is currently in England for her stint with the Trent Rockets in the Women’s Hundred. She spoke to The Cricket Paper about the incidents in Bangladesh: “I will not say that I regret anything because at the end of the day as a player you want to see that fair things are happening.

“As a player you always have the right to express yourself and what you’re feeling,” she added. “I don’t think I said anything wrong to any player or any person, I just said what happened on the field. I don’t regret anything.”

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