As he ran through Australia on the fourth morning in Port Elizabeth, there was bad news for Kagiso Rabada filtering through from the ICC, with the Proteas paceman reported for his send-off of Australia vice-captain David Warner yesterday.

As he waits to find out whether he will be suspended for the remainder of the Test series for his making physical contact with Steve Smith on Friday, Rabada was hit with a Level 1 offence by the International Cricket Council today after screaming in the face of Warner having captured the opener’s wicket.

A Level 1 offence carries with it a maximum of 50 per cent match fee fine and two demerit points.

If he is cleared for the Smith incident by match referee Jeff Crowe, Rabada would not face suspension if given the maximum two demerit point penalty.

Rabada has been charged four times by the ICC, two of which have been for send-offs, an area of his game teammate AB de Villiers has urged the young charge to be smarter about.

“He’s got to be smarter and he knows that,” said de Villiers. “I don’t know what is going to happen to him after this Test but if he is around for the next Test match I think he would have learned from his mistakes.

“There was a lot of emotion from that last Test match going into this one and once again as a fast bowler you want to prove things to people and you want to show everyone you belong on this stage.”

De Villiers added: “I think it’s up to some of our senior guys to just help him.

“It’s important to some of the players to get around him before he’s close(enough) to a batter to tell him ‘you know what? I just got you out’.

“That’s what it basically comes down to, except with more emotion.

“He wants to tell him ‘I just won that battle’. I would’ve been the same.”

A worst-case scenario for Rabada following his charges from this Test would leave the 22-year-old with 11 demerit points, including seven that would stay on his record for 23 months.

Rabada’s history of ICC charges

Feb 2017: Inappropriate and deliberate physical contact with Sri Lanka’s Niroshan Dickwella. Three demerit points and fined 50 per cent of match fee.

July 2017: Used inappropriate language after dismissing England allrounder Ben Stokes. One demerit point and fined 15 per cent of match fee. Suspended one Test.

Feb 2018: Using language which could provoke an aggressive reaction from another player in send-off of India batsman Shikhar Dhawan. One demerit point and fined 15 per cent of match fee.

Mar 2018: Level-two charge for making physical contact with Steve Smith during a spirited send-off. Expected to have argued it was not “deliberate” at a hearing. Later in same Test, screamed in David Warner’s face after dismissing the opener on day three. Possibly will be charged.

Qantas tour of South Africa

South Africa squad: Faf du Plessis (c), Hashim Amla, Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock, Theunis de Bruyn, AB de Villiers, Dean Elgar, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Morne Morkel, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Vernon Philander, Kagiso Rabada.

Australia squad: Steve Smith (c), David Warner (vc), Cameron Bancroft, Pat Cummins, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood, Jon Holland, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Tim Paine, Jhye Richardson, Chadd Sayers, Mitchell Starc.

Warm-up match: Australia beat South Africa A by five wickets. Report, highlights

First Test Australia won by 118 runs. Scorecard

Second Test St George’s Park, Port Elizabeth, March 9-13. Live coverage

Third Test Newlands, Cape Town, March 22-26. Live coverage

Fourth Test Wanderers, Johannesburg, March 30-April 3. Live coverage

SUSPENSION?

Rabada faces the prospect of missing the last 2 Tests of the series between South Africa and Australia after he was hit with a level two charge © Getty

Kagiso Rabada is in danger of missing the last two Tests of the ongoing series between South Africa and Australia after he was hit with a level two charge by match referee Jeff Crowe. Rabada made shoulder contact with Steve Smith after dismissing the Australia captain during the opening day of the second Test.

Article 42.3.1 of the players code of conduct cites “making inappropriate and deliberate contact with another player” as a level two offence, which carries a sanction of a fine and either three or four demerit points. Rabada is currently on five demerit points, and should he be found guilty of the level two breach, he would reach the eight-point mark that triggers a two-Test ban.

Rabada has confirmed that he will contest the charge on the basis that the contact was accidental. He will face a hearing after the third day’s play at St George’s Park, with umpire Chris Gaffaney’s absence on day two due to illness forcing the hearing to be delayed. Privately Rabada has insisted that he was running towards AB de Villiers in the slips – because de Villiers had predicted that Rabada would take Smith’s wicket – at the time of the incident.

However the ICC take a dim view of any form of physical contact, and Rabada also has a record in this regard. Last February he made what the ICC judged to be “avoidable contact” with Sri Lanka’s Niroshan Dickwella during a one-day international match. Both players were sanctioned, with Rabada picking up three demerit points.

The fast bowler subsequently served a one-Test ban during South Africa’s series in England after he was caught using foul language in the wake of his dismissal of Ben Stokes. That incident earned him one demerit point, which took him to four overall – the point at which players are banned for either one Test or two ODIs.

© Cricbuzz

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PORT ELIZABETH (South Africa): South African fast bowler Kagiso Rabada will face a disciplinary hearing on Saturday that could result in a ban from the third Test against Australia.

Cricket South Africa said Rabada, who devastated the Australian batting order on the first day of the second Test on Friday, has been charged with a level two offence following an incident with Australian captain Steve Smith.

Level two offences are for conduct of a serious nature. In Rabada’s case the alleged offence is that of making inappropriate or deliberate contact with another player.

Rabada shouted in celebration and approached Smith aggressively after winning a leg before wicket decision against him and the shoulders of the players made contact.

It is the second incident of a bad-tempered series after Australia’s vice-captain David Warner was fined 75 percent of his match fee for an altercation in a stairwell with the home side’s wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock.

The charge against Rabada was brought by the on-field umpires, Kumar Dharmasena and Chris Gaffaney. The hearing will be conducted by International Cricket Council match referee Jeff Crowe.

A Cricket South Africa spokesperson said Rabada would defend the charge and argue that the contact with Smith was accidental.

If found guilty Rabada could be fined between 50 and 100 percent of his match fee and could be penalised three or four demerit points. Because he already has five demerit points, which led to him being suspended for a Test match against England last year, Rabada could be liable to serve another suspension, which could rule him out of the two remaining Tests in the series.

Cape Town – Proteas fast bowler Kagiso Rabada will face a disciplinary hearing
on Saturday that could result in a ban from the third Test against
Australia.

LIVE: Proteas v Australia, Day 2

Cricket South Africa said Rabada, who devastated the Australian
batting order on the first day of the second Test on Friday, has been
charged with a level two offence following an incident with Australian
captain Steve Smith.

Level two offences are for conduct of a
serious nature. In Rabada’s case the alleged offence is that of making
inappropriate or deliberate contact with another player.

Rabada
shouted in celebration and approached Smith aggressively after winning a
leg before wicket decision against him and the shoulders of the players
made contact.

It is the second incident of a bad-tempered series
after Australia’s vice-captain David Warner was fined 75 percent of his
match fee for an altercation in a stairwell with the home side’s
wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock.

The charge against Rabada was
brought by the on-field umpires, Kumar Dharmasena and Chris Gaffaney.
The hearing will be conducted by International Cricket Council match
referee Jeff Crowe.

A Cricket South Africa spokesperson said Rabada would defend the charge and argue that the contact with Smith was accidental.

If
found guilty Rabada could be fined between 50 and 100 percent of his
match fee and could be penalised three or four demerit points.

Because
he already has five demerit points, which led to him being suspended for
a Test match against England last year, Rabada could be liable to serve
another suspension, which could rule him out of the two remaining Tests
in the series.

See the incident below:

An aggressive send off to steven smith by kagiso rabada. #SAvAUS #SAvsAUS pic.twitter.com/F9gHKVGTOQ

— Alauddin Khilji (@AlauddinKhilj10) March 9, 2018

Will Proteas star Kagiso Rabada find himself in trouble for this incident on day one? #SAvAUS pic.twitter.com/fqvFIx8ogZ

— cricket.com.au (@CricketAus) March 9, 2018

Kagiso Rabada has been reported with a Level 2 code of conduct breach by the standing umpires after his brush with Steve Smith on day one and now faces being suspended for the rest of the series.

But Rabada is appealing the charge and will have a hearing with match referee Jeff Crowe tonight in Port Elizabeth to contest the intention of his actions.

The 22-year-old will argue he did not intentionally mean to come in contact with Smith, hoping for a downgraded charge that would see him escape suspension.

After taking the wicket of Smith lbw for 25 after lunch, Rabada brushed shoulders with the batsman as he moved to celebrate with his jubilant teammates who were stationed behind the wicket.

The contact drew an immediate response from Smith, who wheeled around to look at Rabada before consulting with non-striker Shaun Marsh about reviewing his dismissal.

While the moment might seem minor on the surface, Rabada has five demerit points on his disciplinary record and the brush with Smith could take him to eight and a two-Test suspension.

A Level 2 breach of the ICC code of conduct brings with it a maximum of a 100 per cent match fee fine and between 3-4 demerit points, which if imposed would men Rabada would be ruled out of the remainder of the Test series.

The brush with Smith was after the first of a five-wicket burst from the right-armer, who captured 5-13 in 18 balls to rip the heart out of the Australia middle order either side of tea at St George’s Park.

Should Rabada, who has the best strike-rate (39.7) of any bowler with at least 100 wickets in the past 122 years, be rubbed out, new-ball partner Vernon Philander says he would leave a “massive hole” in the Proteas XI.

“He’s a big part of this bowling line-up,” Philander said. “Let’s hope that’s not the case and we’ll have a four-pronged attack come Cape Town.”

Former Proteas captain Graeme Smith says Rabada’s actions were “silly” given the potential threat of suspension that hangs over his head.

“It’s a difficult one,” Smith told cricket.com.au in Port Elizabeth. “Obviously, we know any kind of physical contact is not on in the game.

“It looked like they were walking in the same direction.

“From a series perspective, you hope he doesn’t get a ban, you want to see the best players playing against the best players but it is silly.”

Prior to the series, Steve Smith flagged the Aussies would potentially look to target Rabada given his precarious disciplinary record.

“It could perhaps be a plan to try and get him fired up,” he told cricket.com.au last month in Johannesburg.

“You never know what some guys do when they’re fired up.

“He’s obviously a quality bowler and a big player for them.

“You don’t want to see guys getting suspended or anything like that, you want to come up against the best, but you never know.”

Rabada’s disciplinary history

Feb, 2017: Inappropriate and deliberate physical contact with Sri Lanka’s Niroshan Dickwella. Three demerit points and fined 50 per cent of match fee.

July, 2017: Used inappropriate language after dismissing England allrounder Ben Stokes. One demerit point and fined 15 per cent of match fee.Suspended one Test. 

Feb, 2018: Using language which could provoke an aggressive reaction from another player in send-off of India batsman Shikhar Dhawan. One demerit point and fined 15 per cent of match fee.

Qantas tour of South Africa

South Africa squad: Faf du Plessis (c), Hashim Amla, Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock, Theunis de Bruyn, AB de Villiers, Dean Elgar, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Morne Morkel, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Vernon Philander, Kagiso Rabada.

Australia squad: Steve Smith (c), David Warner (vc), Cameron Bancroft, Pat Cummins, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood, Jon Holland, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Tim Paine, Jhye Richardson, Chadd Sayers, Mitchell Starc.

Warm-up match: Australia beat South Africa A by five wickets. Report, highlights

First Test Australia won by 118 runs. Scorecard

Second Test St George’s Park, Port Elizabeth, March 9-13. Live coverage

Third Test Newlands, Cape Town, March 22-26. Live coverage

Fourth Test Wanderers, Johannesburg, March 30-April 3. Live coverage