Arundhati Reddy punished by ICC after match-winning spell against Pakistan in Women's T20 World Cup

India pacer Arundhati Reddy was reprimanded for breaching the ICC Code of Conduct during the game between India and Pakistan on Sunday (October 6) in the ongoing ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024.

The 27-year old starred with the ball as India beat Pakistan by six wickets to open their account in the tournament. However, the match-winning performance could not save her from being reprimanded by the ICC. Arundhati Reddy was reprimanded for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct.

The India star was found to violate Article 2.5 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to "using language, actions or gestures which disparage or which could provoke an aggressive reaction from a batter upon his/her dismissal during an International Match".

The incident that landed Arundhati Reddy in hot water took place in the final over of Pakistan's innings when she was bowling to Nida Dar. On the fourth ball of the over, she castled Dar and gave her a fiery send-off. A pumped-up Reddy was seen gesturing toward the pavilion after dismissing Dar.

Reddy has also received one demerit point for her action. She admitted to the offense and accepted the sanction. As a result, there was no need for a formal hearing.

Arundhati Reddy bowls India to win:

Arundhati Reddy's career-best performance with the ball helped India beat Pakistan and get off the mark in the competition. After suffering a heavy 58-run loss against New Zealand in their tournament opener, India needed to beat Pakistan to stay in contention for the semifinals.

Asked to bowl first, India did well to restrict Pakistan to a modest total of 105/8. Dar was the top-scorer for Pakistan, scoring 28 runs. No other Pakistan batter could reach the 20-run mark. For India, Reddy was the pick of the bowlers, taking a career-best 3/19 off 4 overs.

In reply, India chased down the total in the 19th over. Opener Shafali Verma was India's top-scorer, scoring 32 runs off 35 balls. The likes of Harmanpreet Kaur (29) and Jemimah Rodrigues (23) played crucial knocks too. India will be in action next on Wednesday (October 9) when they take on Sri Lanka. In their final group game, India will be facing defending champions Australia.