Rahmanullah Gurbaz's aggression receives reprimand; Finds guilty of breaching Code Of Conduct during AFG vs ENG 2023 World Cup

Afghanistan recorded one of the epic victories in its history in the ongoing ODI World Cup at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Sunday. They completely outclassed defending champions England to record only their second win in World Cup history. Rahmanullah Gurbaz was one of the key factors in their 69-run win, but the opening batter received a reprimand from the Cricket Governing Body. 

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Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran put on a 114-run partnership for the first wicket and gave Afghanistan a flying start. However, England quickly took control with back-to-back wickets before the Afghans staged a brilliant comeback. Gurbaz had to depart after playing a blistering knock (80 off 57 balls) that put England in the driver's seat. 

The 21-year-old was furious after being dismissed as it was a suicidal call from the Afghan skipper. Gurbaz didn’t hesitate to respond to Hashmatullah Shahidi’s call, but a clean throw from fielder David Willey was well finished by wicketkeeper Jos Buttler. Gurbaz missed on his well-deserved century by 20 runs and he showed his frustration while walking back to the pavilion. 

Watch Gurbaz's run-out dismissal 

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Gurbaz run-out on 80 pic.twitter.com/JXKjIOKh3Q

— Sitaraman (@Sitaraman112971) October 15, 2023

He slammed his bat on the boundary rope and even hit a chair, as stated in the official announcement. The right-hander was found to have breached Article 2.2 of the Cricket Governing Body Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel. As a result, one demerit point has been added to his disciplinary record.

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“Gurbaz was found to have breached Article 2.2 of the Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to ‘abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment or fixtures and fittings’ during an International Match,” the statement further added.

“Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand, a maximum penalty of 50 per cent of a player’s match fee, and one or two demerit points,” the statement added. 

Afghanistan faced a middle-order collapse, but Ikram Alikhil's brilliant half-century and effective cameos from Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Rashid Khan took their team total to 284/10. In reply, barring Harry Brook, none of the England batters found any resistance and eventually, they were bowled out for 215 runs. Mujeeb, Rashid and Mohammad Nabi were the pick of the bowlers - collectively grabbed 8 wickets.