Hardik Pandya punished by BCCI for IPL code of conduct violation

Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya has been fined 10 per cent of his match fee and has been handed one Demerit Point for breaching Level 1 of the IPL's Code of Conduct for players and team officials. Pandya was punished for his action during MI's match against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Wednesday, which the former lost by four wickets.

IPL issued a statement for the fine on Thursday, stating, "Hardik Pandya was found to have breached Article 2.2 of the IPL's Code of Conduct, which pertains to 'abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment or fixtures and fittings during a Match.'

The incident occurred on the fourth delivery of the 10th over of the second innings of the match, when Pandya, while walking back to his run-up, knocked the bails of the wicket with force. MI skipper admitted to the offence and accepted the sanction imposed by the match referee, Rajiv Seth.

Pandya was making his comeback in the MI playing XI after missing three matches due to an injury.

The outcome helped KKR remain alive in contention for the playoffs, while MI are already eliminated. KKR, who invited MI to bat first, restricted the visitors to 147/8 in 20 overs, with Saurabh Dubey, Kartik Tyagi and Cameron Green picking up two wickets each.

KKR didn't get off to an ideal start in response, losing Finn Allen and Ajinkya Rahane inside the powerplay. Cameron Green too failed to do much with the bat. However, a resilient show by seasoned Manish Pandy, along with overseas star Rovman Powell pushed KKR close to win. The target was eventually chased down by the hosts in the 19th over.

This was KKR's sixth win in the previous seven games and it helped them climb sixth on the points table. MI are placed ninth with four wins and nine losses.

-with ANI inputs