New Delhi: Apart from the ongoing controversy at Asia Cup 2025, the Pakistan cricket team has had several run-ins with former Zimbabwean cricketer and match referee Andy Pycroft, with tensions between the two stretching back years.
Pycroft has previously played a key role in the suspensions of several Pakistani bowlers, including Mohammad Hafeez and Saeed Ajmal, for illegal bowling actions. Now, the Asia Cup controversy is the latest chapter in this ongoing saga.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had filed a complaint with the International Cricket Council (ICC) alleging that Pycroft asked Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha, at the time of the toss, not to shake hands with Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav on Sunday.
The PCB demanded Pycroft’s suspension from the remaining Asia Cup campaign but it was turned down by the ICC.
In a latest development ahead of Pakistan’s must-win Wednesday match against the UAE, a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) insider confirmed to Indian news agencies that Richie Richardson will replace Pycroft as match referee following a compromise reached with the International Cricket Council (ICC).
“They (Pakistan) are making an issue of it because they lost the match. They think it’s gully cricket,” said former Indian cricketer and match-referee Kiran Mokashi.
“ICC lays down playing conditions for tournaments and handshakes are never necessary. It falls in the ‘spirit of the game’ category. But, it’s not a rule which is precisely why ICC rejected PCB’s plea.”
In its complaint, the PCB cited Article 2.1.1 of the ICC’s Code of Conduct for match officials and support staff, which covers conduct “contrary to the spirit of the game.”
PCB chairperson Mohsin Naqvi, who is also president of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), demanded Pycroft’s immediate removal from the rest of the tournament.
“The PCB has lodged a complaint with the ICC regarding violations by the Match Referee of the ICC Code of Conduct and the MCC Laws pertaining to the Spirit of Cricket. The PCB has demanded an immediate removal of the Match Referee from the Asia Cup,” Naqvi said in a statement on social media.
Meanwhile, former cricketer Madan Lal recommends the Pakistan team to focus on their game and put their concentration in the right direction.
“Pycroft is a reputed match referee. He has taken some serious decisions over the course of his career. Even if he asked the Pakistani skipper to not shake hands, he must have been asked to do so by the Indian skipper,” he said.
Pakistan team manager Naved Cheema had also filed a complaint with the ACC accusing Pycroft for the team sheets not being exchanged between the two skippers in the Sunday clash.
“Dragging Pycroft is unnecessary. Because he didn’t force anyone to do or not do anything. The Indian team refused to shake hands because of the pahalgam attack and it was their personal call,” added Mokashi, who has served as a match referee from 2004-2014.
Long-standing beef
In August 2014, off-spinner Saeed Ajmal was reported for a suspected illegal bowling action by Pycroft after the first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle.
This led to his indefinite suspension by the ICC on September 9, 2014. He had been reported for a suspect action before in 2009 but was cleared after tests.
Just months after this incident, all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez was suspended for illegal bowling action against New Zealand at Abu Dhabi in December, 2014.
Pycroft reported to the ICC about the off-spinner’s action. He is also said to have reported it to Moin Khan, the chief selector of Pakistan.
Hafeez reported for suspected illegal bowling action
— ICC Media (@ICCMediaComms) November 13, 2014
“Match referees don’t just take decisions out of thin air. They have the benefit of slow motions. So they watch the movement multiple times in slow motion before making a decision,” Mokashi explained. “One cannot keep questioning the match referee’s decision because there is a governing body overlooking everything.”
In 2022, Pakistani batsman Asif Ali faced suspension and was fined 25 percent of his match fees for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct during the Asia Cup match in Sharjah.
In the 19th over of Pakistan’s innings, when Afghanistan fast bowler Fareed Ahmad came up and made physical contact with Asif after dismissing him and the batter reacted with an aggressive gesture of the bat. Here, too, the match referee was Pycroft.
Asif was found to have breached Article 2.6 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to “using a gesture that is obscene, offensive or insulting during an International Match.”
Fareed, too, was found to have breached Article 2.1.12, which relates to “inappropriate physical contact with a Player, Player Support Personnel, Umpire, Match Referee or any other person (including a spectator) during an International Match.”
Past episodes
Since 2009, Pycroft has officiated in over 100 Test matches, making him the fourth-most experienced match referee in the game. Over the years, he has overseen several high-profile and controversial encounters, including the infamous Sandpaper-gate Test in Cape Town and the Boxing Day Test between Australia and India in December.
Pycroft was the match referee during the 2018 Cape Town Test, where Australia’s captain Steve Smith was found guilty of ball tampering. It was Pycroft who imposed a one-Test ban on Smith and fined him his entire match fee.
Later, during the last year’s Boxing Day Test between Australia and India, Pycroft was again in the spotlight when Virat Kohli shoulder-barged Australian batsman Sam Konstas. A section of the Australian media, along with some former cricketers and fans, were critical of Pycroft for not handing Kohli a one-Test ban as well.
However, Pycroft’s decision was influenced by policy changes implemented after the Sandpaper-gate incident, which led him to charge Kohli with a less severe Level 1 offence for “inappropriate physical contact.” The Indian star was fined 20 percent of his match fees for the episode at the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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