LONDON (Reuters) – England all-rounder Dimitri Mascarenhas has been handed a two-week suspension starting next season after pleading guilty to a Twitter outburst attacking national selector Geoff Miller.
“The panel considered this to be a serious breach of the regulations particularly given his status as a senior cricketer and club captain,” the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said in a statement yesterday.
The injured Mascarenhas posted an expletive-filled message on the social networking site after the England squad for the Twenty20 internationals and one-day series against Pakistan was announced last month.
The 32-year-old, who has played 20 one-day internationals, pleaded guilty and apologised unreservedly for his actions.
He was also fined 500 pounds ($776) in addition to the 1000 pounds he was docked by his county Hampshire. England batsman Kevin Pietersen was fined this month for a similar Twitter rant after he was dropped for the first time in his international career.
