Reece Topley, England’s fast bowler, has been fined 15% of his match fee by the ICC for smashing a chair in frustration after suffering another injury setback during the first T20I against West Indies in Barbados.
Topley, 30, injured his right knee during his delivery stride in the series opener on Saturday. Despite attempting to continue bowling after a rain delay, he left the field after one more delivery and took no further part in the match.
This latest setback is a cruel blow for Topley, whose career has been plagued by injuries. As he walked up the steps to the players’ pavilion, he was seen picking up a plastic chair and smashing it on the staircase handrail.
It was a similar reaction to one Topley had in Mumbai during the 50-over World Cup in October 2023. He had swiped another chair out of his path after leaving the field with what would later be revealed as a tournament-ending break to his left index finger.
While the severity of Topley’s latest injury is unknown, it was significant enough for him to miss England’s second match in Barbados, a seven-wicket win on Sunday. This adds to a litany of injuries that have hampered Topley’s career, including a career-threatening stress fracture of the back and a rolled ankle sustained on a boundary sponge during a practice match in Brisbane, which ruled him out of England’s successful T20 World Cup campaign in 2022.
Topley escaped punishment for the 2023 incident, but this time he was found guilty of a Level 1 breach of the ICC’s Code of Conduct, specifically Article 2.2 relating to “abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment or fixtures and fittings during an International Match.”
Topley admitted the offense and accepted the sanction proposed by Richie Richardson, the ICC’s match referee, so there was no need for a formal hearing. In addition to his fine, one demerit point has been added to Topley’s disciplinary record. If a player reaches four or more demerit points within a 24-month period, they are converted into suspension points and the player is banned. However, this was Topley’s first such offense within the time period.
