SYDNEY: England pacer Tom Curran expressed his “deep regret” on Sunday after losing an appeal over a four-match Big Bash League ban for referee intimidation, saying he always respected match officials.
Sydney Sixers’ Curran, who has played 30 T20 matches for England, has been punished following a pre-match incident against the Hobart Hurricanes this month.
It involved referee Mohammad Qureshi having to move to avoid colliding with him during training.
Curran was charged with “intimidating or attempting to intimidate a referee, match referee or medical staff, whether by language or behavior (including gestures) during the match.”
He said he was “deeply sorry” about the way he reacted.
Curran added: “Throughout my decade-long career, I have always endeavored to establish a friendly and respectful relationship with match officials, which I believe is reflected in the lack of previous breaches of the Code of Conduct across the world.”
“I am truly sorry that I chose to continue training at the direction of Hakam Qureshi, and if he thought that I sought physical contact with him.
“I would like to apologize to everyone that this has affected.”
In upholding the ban, Cricket Australia’s general manager, Alastair Dobson, said match officials must be respected.
“Umpires are part of the lifeblood of cricket and it is essential that they command the respect and appreciation of players at all levels of the game,” he said.
“We acknowledge the remorse Tom has shown following the appeal and look forward to seeing him back in Sixers colors.”
Sixers president Rachel Haynes said the club accepted the punishment.
“We sought to appeal the original decision based on previous code of conduct issues,” she said.
“While we disagreed that Tom violated the rules through his conduct, we felt the charge was inconsistent with the other crimes. Following the sentencing, we respect that this is not the case.”