T20 World Cup 2024 – Matthew Wade avoids fine after row with umpire in win over England

Facing Adil Rashid in the 18th over of Australia’s innings, Wade stepped back down the leg side while the bowler was in action, and hit the ball back down the pitch. The ICC said in a press release: “[Wade] it was expected to be called ‘dead ball’ by the referee. If not, Wade then argued with the referee about this decision.”

Wade exchanged words with Jos Buttler, England’s wicketkeeper, and continued to argue with Menon after taking a single off the next delivery. He accepted a Level 1 breach of the ICC’s code of conduct but avoided the maximum penalty of a 50% match penalty, instead adding a demerit point to his record for the next two years.

Buttler suggested he could intervene, but said Wade had backed off “too late”. He said: “[I’m not sure] I would have said, ‘I don’t know if he withdrew, let’s just continue’. But the umpire seemed to say, ‘well, because you’ve played it, it’s a dot ball’… he seemed fine, then he gave it away too late.”

Adam Zampa, who took 2 for 28 in Australia’s win, said Wade was furious with the incident. “Wadey’s a fiery guy, very competitive, and there’s a little something about him. That’s what we love about Wadey… having him behind the stumps, competing with him, you can hear his voice and that makes a big difference.

“When you have a quiet wicketkeeper, his body is different to someone like Wadey, you can feel that too. I love playing with Wadey. He’s very competitive… He stepped back and played that shot, and I think it’s like letting him down the leg, a dead ball but yeah, it doesn’t take much to shoot him Wade.

Zampa also criticized England’s performance, suggesting they let their frustration get the better of them – especially when they dropped Travis Head and David Warner. “They were under the pump and it showed,” he said. “It is very difficult to bowl to these two in the Powerplay.

“If your pitchers don’t close situations quickly, I think it can be disruptive, and Heady and Davey take advantage of that. We try not to. We talk about it a little bit. Our leadership isn’t the same. They’re calm, and I think that helps us as bowlers.”