
MUMBAI – West Indies batsman Nicholas Pooran has been handed a four-game ban for ball tampering during Monday's third one-day international against Afghanistan, the International Cricket Council said on Wednesday.
The 24-year-old Pooran, who has played 16 ODIs and 14 Twenty20 internationals for West Indies, has admitted the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by the match referee, the governing body said in a statement.
“Pooran was charged with violating Article 2.14 of the code, which relates to 'changing the condition of the ball' after video footage showed him scratching the surface of the ball with his thumbnail,” the ICC said.
“He will now miss the next four T20I games.”
Pooran will not be available for West Indies' three-match T20I series against Afghanistan and the first game of the subsequent three-match series against India.