Pakistan could face further charges

Pakistan could face further charges following the events at The Oval © Getty Images

Malcolm Speed, the ICC chief executive, has said Pakistan could face further charges after yesterday's events at The Oval. The whole team has been cited for the condition of the ball and the ICC are awaiting the umpires' reports.

"The umpires are meeting this morning to consider whether there should be any further charges in relation to the refusal by Pakistan to take the field that resulted in the forfeit of the match," Speed told BBC Radio. "It may be that there is more than one charge."

Having failed to appear for the session after tea, Pakistan again remained in the changing room when the umpires went out a second time 15 minutes later. They then took the field but by then the umpires ruled that the match had been forfeited and, after several hours of deliberation, the game was awarded the game to England, whose victory meant they took the four-match series 3-0.

"The next step that will be taken will be that there will be a [ICC] disciplinary hearing to deal with the ball handling issues," Speed said. "I'm not sure whether that will take place today [Monday] or whether it will be later in the week.

"There are other provisions under the code of conduct that would enable a charge to be laid for bringing the game into disrepute and that is being considered this morning. It would be directed at the captain [Inzamam-ul-Haq].

"The captain is responsible for the actions of the team, that's very clearly laid out in the laws of the game and it's one of the things that we try very hard to uphold. The ball tampering charge, that will be dealt with, and there is power there for the match referee to fine or ban the player there.

"Similarly, if other charges are laid, the player could face fines or if he is found guilty, he could face a fine or a ban."