Due to their 12 point deduction in the County
Championship, Sussex will play Derbyshire without their skipper, Cheteshwar
Pujara, this week. After the team surpassed the threshold of four fixed
penalties in the same season, Pujara was subject to an immediate ban.
In addition, Sussex has decided to bench three players
for conduct that, in the opinion of head coach Paul Farbrace,
“tarnished” the thrilling 15-run victory against Leicestershire last
week: Jack Carson, Tom Haines, and Ari Karvelas.
With two games left in the season, Sussex has slid to
sixth in the league, 30 points behind second-placed Worcestershire, despite
defeating their promotion rivals at Hove.
During Leicestershire’s fourth-innings pursuit of 499,
the 22-year-old England Lions offspinner Carson was talked to by the umpires
when it appeared that he attempted to trip Ben Cox as the batter was finishing
a run at the non-striker’s end. Through the Sussex website, he expressed regret
for “going beyond what is considered acceptable within the spirit of
cricket.”
“We have made Jack and Tom unavailable for
selection for this game at Derbyshire,” Farbrace said. “Following the
umpires and match referee’s decision to charge both players with on-field level
one and level two offences, we needed to take a stance, and show them we will
not condone such behaviours.
“Ultimately it has cost us the availability of
Cheteshwar and we have been deducted 12 points.
“We have also decided it is not appropriate for
Ari Karvelas to be made available for selection until the investigation that is
in place has been concluded.
“This provides other players in our squad with a
great opportunity to show they can perform at this level, and more importantly
contribute towards the team challenging to win matches in the County
Championship.
“It is a great shame that these incidents have
tarnished what was a fantastic game against Leicestershire, and all the hard
work that has gone into the season. I am disappointed for our fantastic members
and supporters and can assure them we will be working hard to make sure we are
not in this position again.”