George Bailey could face one-match suspension for slow over-rate

Australian ODI captain George Bailey could be suspended for the team’s next One Day International (ODI) match, against England in Hobart on Friday, as a result of his bowlers not bowling their quota out in the match against India, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday. This is Australia’s second such offence in 12 months, with them penalised for slow over-rate in the first ODI of the 5-match series against South Africa last November.

It was always going to be a challenging task after the team management decided to drop their frontline spinner Xavier Doherty in favour of an extra pacer in Gurinder Sandhu. Bailey couldn’t bowl part-time off-spinner Glenn Maxwell as well, as the Indian batsmen, well set after a few early blows, would have taken advantage of his bowling. As a result, the home team took 26 more minutes to bowl their 50 overs.

ICC, in a release after the Australia-South Africa match at Perth, had earlier confirmed that both Bailey and South African captain AB de Villiers would be suspended for a match if they are found guilty again. The release read: "If Bailey and de Villiers are found guilty of one more minor over-rate offence in ODIs over the next 12 months, they will receive a one-match suspension as per the provisions of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel."

If Bailey gets suspended for the next game, Steven Smith is likely to captain the side against England. Australia has won both its matches so far, while England and India haven’t yet opened their account.