Hurray! Yuvraj escapes Chris Broad's axe

Colombo, February 1: Yuvraj Singh has been found not guilty of breaching the International Cricket Council (ICC) Code of Conduct following a hearing here Sunday. It was unusual that Chris Broad of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Match Referees did not penalise, considering he has punished many Indians in the past and, at times, unjustfiably, feel many.

Yuvraj had been charged under Level 1.3 of the code, which refers to “showing dissent at an umpire’s decision”. But at the resultant hearing, Broad cleared him of the charge.

The charge related to an incident that took place after the first ball of the 33rd over of the second ODI of the current series between Sri Lanka and India when Yuvraj was given out lbw. The incidents was reported by on-field umpires Brian Jerling and Gamini Silva as well as third umpire Kumar Dharmasena, all of whom are members of the Emirates International Panel of ICC Umpires.

“After reviewing video evidence of the incident, I am of the opinion that there was no conclusive evidence that Yuvraj showed dissent at the decision,” said Mr Broad. “He did stay at the crease but the delay in departing was not excessive and I felt he showed a level of disappointment rather than dissent.”

Present at the hearing was the match referee, the player, the three umpires who brought the charge, India coach Gary Kirsten and India team manager Prakash Dixit.