Denesh Ramdin fined for jibe at Viv Richards

Denesh Ramdin, the West Indies wicketkeeper-batsman, was fined 20% of his match fees for the gesture directed at Viv Richards during the Edgbaston Test.

The International Cricket Council charged Ramdin with a Level 1 offence after Tony Hill and Kumar Dharmasena, the on-field umpires, and Aleem Dar, the third umpire, reported the incident.

Ramdin was found to have breached clause 2.1.8 (a), for "conduct contrary to the spirit of the game".

Ramdin pleaded guilty to the offence and accepted the proposed sanction so there was no need for a formal hearing.

"We all understand the importance of celebrating a milestone, however, one should not use that time as an opportunity to hit out at one's critic or send messages to the world," said Roshan Mahanama, the match referee. "I hope Mr Ramdin has learnt his lesson from this incident and that we will not see such behaviour by him or any player in the future when celebrating an achievement within a game of international cricket."

Ramdin, after reaching his second Test century on the fourth day of the third Test against England, pulled out a sheet of paper from his pocket on which he had written, "YEA VIV TALK NAH".

It was a response to Richards' criticism that Ramdin's form had deteriorated of late and he came across as something of a "lost boy".

The same evening, on Sunday, Ramdin had said that his emotions had boiled over, which caused him to celebrate the milestone the way he did. "Sir Viv had said something in the press, and I think I got a bit emotional - and it came out the way it did," said Ramdin. "He's a legend of the Caribbean - and I still look up to him. If I see him anywhere, I'll still call him out and have a drink with him.

"I have not been getting runs since my return and we are playing against the No.1 Test side in the world and I wanted to do well."

Ramdin had held out a similar written message when he scored his other Test hundred, in Barbados in 2009, also against England. That time, he had thanked former West Indies players Ian Bishop and David Williams, and then team-mate Ramnaresh Sarwan.