Cricket Discipline Commission Hearing

The Cricket Discipline Commission (CDC) has imposed suspended sanctions against Leicestershire County Cricket Club and Colin Ackermann following a remote disciplinary hearing on 2 August.

The hearing was held after Leicestershire received six fixed penalties in a 12-month period; Ackermann was captain on all six occasions.

As a consequence of the fixed penalties, Leicestershire were charged with a breach of ECB Directive 3.6.21(a). The club was given suspended points deductions dependent on the future conduct of Leicestershire’s players.

The Disciplinary Panel’s decision will result in a penalty of 12 points in the LV= Insurance County Championship or two points in the Vitality Blast or two points in the Royal London Cup being imposed if cricketers playing for Leicestershire incur one or more fixed penalty breaches in any competition within 12 months from the date of the hearing, subject to the discretion of the Panel.

Ackermann was charged with a breach of ECB Directive 3.6.22. The Panel determined that Ackermann will serve a one-match suspension if a Leicestershire player receives a fixed penalty in a match in which he is captain within 12 months from the date of the hearing.

Unfair and improper conduct

Within the same proceedings, the Panel imposed sanctions on Ben Mike and Leicestershire after Mike deliberately damaged, or sought to damage, the pitch in Leicestershire’s Vitality T20 Blast match against Northamptonshire on 29 June 2021.

Both Mike and Leicestershire were charged with a breach of ECB Directive 3.2.

Mike was suspended from playing in two Royal London Cup matches; the Panel took into account that Leicestershire had already withdrawn him from one match which they deemed to be already served.

Leicestershire have been deducted one point from their Vitality T20 Blast total for 2021.

The Panel

The Disciplinary Panel was chaired by Mike Smith, alongside Claire Taylor and Tom Poynton.

Any appeal must be made within 14 days from the date of the decision.

The full written reasons can be found here.