Ravindra Jadeja Row: India Want ICC to Appeal Against 'Anderson Not-Guilty' Verdict
Unhappy with the Ravindra Jadeja and James Anderson 'not-guilty' verdict by judicial commissioner Gordon Lewis, BCCI wants ICC to appeal against decision.
The Ravindra Jadeja-James Anderson row could take another acrimonious turn with the Indian cricket Board (BCCI) wanting the ICC to appeal against the decision made by judicial commissioner Gordon Lewis last week at Southampton.
The ICC on Tuesday confirmed that it has received and is considering the written decision of the judicial commissioner, in respect of his findings that Anderson and Jadeja were not guilty of breaching the ICC Code of Conduct.
On August 1, Justice Lewis had pronounced Jadeja and Anderson "not guilty" due to a lack of compelling evidence. The two players were involved in an unsavoury incident on Day 2 of the first Test at Nottingham on July 10. India and England had traded charges forcing the ICC to appoint a judicial commissioner.
Lewis overturned a fine imposed by match referee David Boon on Jadeja and let off both players for lack of evidence to nail them. The Indians, who had triggered the crisis by filing a report, were clearly unhappy. Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni had publicly backed Jadeja and indirectly said Anderson was the culprit.
BCCI has now requested the ICC to appeal against Lewis' decision. The ICC chief executive Dave Richardson has until Sunday to file an appeal. The BCCI had pressed Level 3 charge against Anderson after the team management had insisted on it.
The ICC, now headed by N. Srinivasan, has a right to appeal. If ICC files an appeal, a three-member appeals panel will be constituted to hear the matter afresh. The players, however, can continue to play till the appeal is disposed of.