Jaiswal and Asitha touched heads in Colombo, and both lost a quarter of their match fee
A two-second flashpoint after Jaiswal was bowled on the opening morning has cost both players a slice of their pay and a mark on their disciplinary record.
Aug 24, 2026
Yashasvi Jaiswal and Asitha Fernando have each been fined 25 per cent of their match fee and given one demerit point for the incident that followed Jaiswal’s dismissal on the opening day of the Colombo Test. Both players admitted the charge, both accepted the sanction, and neither needed a hearing.
What happened in the 17th over
Asitha bowled Jaiswal for 45 with the last ball of the 17th over on Sunday morning at the Sinhalese Sports Club. Sri Lanka celebrated. Jaiswal, on his way off, changed direction and walked towards the bowler, and the two of them exchanged words. Asitha then moved his head towards Jaiswal. Jaiswal leaned in. Their heads made contact.
The whole thing lasted a couple of seconds. Nobody swung at anybody, and play carried on.
Article 2.12, and what a demerit point costs
The charge was a breach of Article 2.12 of the ICC code of conduct for players and player support personnel, which covers inappropriate physical contact with another player, an umpire, a match referee or anyone else on the field.
Andy Pycroft of the Emirates ICC Elite Panel proposed the sanctions and both players took them, so there was no formal hearing. The ICC noted that neither man had an offence on his record in the previous 24 months, which matters more than the money does. Demerit points accumulate over that rolling 24-month window, and once enough of them pile up a fine becomes a suspension. One point each leaves both of them well short.
Two players having very different weeks
Jaiswal’s 45 came off 53 balls and contained nine fours, and it is the only innings he will play in this Test unless Sri Lanka bat twice and India need a fourth-innings chase.
Asitha has had the better of it since. He finished with 4 for 106 from 29 overs, took the wickets of Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Ravindra Jadeja and debutant Saransh Jain, and was the only Sri Lanka bowler to threaten with any consistency while India piled up 503 for 9 before declaring on Monday.
The flare-up is out of the way now, and what is left is a Test that Sri Lanka have to win to square a two-match series they trail 1-0. They were 1 without loss when the rain came back, 502 behind, with three days to go.