4. Dinesh Chandimal ball-tampering scandal

During the second Test of the three-match Test series between Windies and Sri Lanka at St. Lucia in June 2018, the on-field umpires Aleem Dar and Ian Gould decided to change the ball before the beginning of day 3 (16 June) after they felt unhappy with the ball condition towards the end of day 2 (15 June). In addition, umpires decided to award five penalty runs to the Windies team in their running first innings.

Sri Lankan captain Dinesh Chandimal protested on that decision as he refused to field his team at the beginning on day 3. It took more than one hour when Chandimal’s team finally came out on the field as the day’s play resume without further interrupted. Later, video footage revealed that Chandimal attempted to tamper with the ball by using saliva and a sweet. Chandimal also acknowledged that he had put something in his mouth but wasn’t able to recall what it was.

Soon, Chandimal was handed the maximum punishment available under the code, i.e. two suspension points and a fine of 100 percent of his match fee (for ball tampering). Due to the two suspension points, Chandimal was suspended for the next Test of that series which was the final Test of the series and that too it was the first day/night Test in West Indies.

A month later, another verdict came out and that was for the refusal to take the field at the beginning on day 3 where the head coach Chandika Hathurusingha and the manager Asanka Gurusinha had found guilty along with Chandimal. All of them were further banned for two Tests and four ODIs.