Pakistan fined 40% of match fee and deducted 8 ICC WTC points after being found guilty of slow over-rate during their first Test against Bangladesh. #CricketNews
Pakistan's Mohammad Abbas (second from right) and teammates Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hasan Ali left the field at the end of the second day of the first Test match between Pakistan and Bangladesh at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on May 9, 2026. The team was penalised for maintaining a slow over-rate according to Article 2.22 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel. Jeff Crowe, an Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees member, ruled that Pakistan were eight overs short of their required target after taking permitted time allowances into account.
In line with Article 16.11.2 of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) playing conditions, teams are penalised one point for each over they fail to bowl within the allotted time. Consequently, Pakistan incurred a 40% fine and were deducted eight points from their WTC tally. Pakistan captain Shan Masood admitted the offence and accepted the proposed sanction, thus avoiding a formal hearing.
The charge was levelled by on-field umpires Richard Kettleborough and Kumar Dharmasena, third umpire Allahuddien Palekar, and fourth umpire Gazi Sohel. The disciplinary setback came after Bangladesh secured a historic 104-run victory in their first-ever home Test match against Pakistan. Chasing 268 for victory, Pakistan were well-placed at 119/3 with debutant Abdullah Fazal and experienced all-rounder Salman Ali Agha at the crease.
However, Fazal's dismissal in the 32nd over triggered a dramatic collapse as Pakistan lost six wickets for just 44 runs in 21 overs, eventually being bowled out for 163. Earlier in the match, Bangladesh posted 413 in their first innings, led by captain Najmul Hossain Shanto's century and a fluent 91 from Mominul Haque.
Pakistan replied with 386, powered by a debut hundred from Azan Awais and useful contributions from Abdullah Fazal and Mohammad Rizwan. The result lifted Bangladesh to sixth in the ICC WTC standings with 16 points and a win percentage of 44.44 after three matches, while Pakistan slipped to seventh with 12 points and a win percentage of 33.33, having won one and lost two of their three fixtures.
This setback for Pakistan comes as they attempt to bounce back from the loss in this historic Test series against Bangladesh.
