ECB suspends Mascarenhas for 14 days for ‘foul’ Tweet

LONDON - The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has suspended all-rounder Dimitri Mascarenhas from all cricket under its jurisdiction for a period of 14 days, as a punishment for his foul-mouthed outburst on micro-blogging site Twitter against national selector Geoff Miller.

The suspension would start from the first day of his county Hampshire’s competitive county cricket programme in 2011.

The decision was taken at a disciplinary hearing, where Mascarenhas pleaded guilty to breaching ECB directives by making a personal attack on Miller and also to bringing the game into disrepute, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.

The discipline commission panel considered it to be a serious breach of the regulations, particularly given his status as a senior cricketer and club captain.

The batsman has also been ordered to pay 500 pounds towards the costs of the hearing.

Mascarenhas is not the only England cricketer to be fined for using Twitter to criticize selectors.

Earlier, former captain Kevin Pietersen had received an undisclosed fine for his rant over being dropped from the ODI squad for the five-match series against Pakistan. (ANI)