Ashwell Prince, South Africa's batting coach, along with Kyle Verreynne, have been officially reprimanded for breaching ICC's conduct code during the third day of the final Test against Australia due to their response to an umpire's decision.
The incident occurred after South African player Marques Ackerman was dismissed. Ackerman wanted to review the call but was denied, as the request came too late. Prince, not pleased with the timing issue, voiced his opposition to the umpires. Simultaneously, Verreynne encouraged Ackerman to delay his exit from the field.
The violation was categorized under Article 2.8, concerning dissent against an umpire's call. Both Prince and Verreynne accepted fines and received a demerit point, their first in 24 months, averting the need for a formal hearing.
Match referee Javagal Srinath issued the sanctions, with charges brought forth by umpires Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Chris Gaffaney, and Lubabalo Gcuma. The penalties hover between a reprimand to a possible 50% fine of a match fee, accompanied by demerit points.
With enough demerit points accumulated over two years, suspension points may be converted to match bans. Fortunately for South Africa, they secured a win in the Test by 176 runs, clinching the series 2-1.
