AUSTRALIAN fast bowler Mitchell Starc and West Indian all-rounder Kieron Pollard have escaped suspension but both have been hit with fines as a result of their fiery confrontation recently during an Indian Premier League clash in Mumbai.

The pair was hauled before match referee Andy Pycroft following their much-publicised spat, which spilled over after Starc peppered Pollard with some short-pitched bowling culminating in a bouncer that narrowly missed the Trinidadian’s head.
The incident prompted an exchange of words and then saw the Mumbai Indians’ Pollard dismissively ‘shoo’ Starc back to his bowling mark by waving his hand at the clearly unimpressed Royal Challengers Bangalore left-armer.
Just as Starc was about to deliver the next ball, Pollard belatedly pulled away from his batting stance and when Starc responded by firing the ball at the retreating batsman, Pollard shaped to throw his bat at the bowler.
Even though he ended up hurling his bat into the turf, he was charged with a level two offence under the IPL code of conduct for “throwing his bat at or near a player” and was fined 75 per cent of his match fee after admitting the offence.
Starc also pleaded guilty to the level charge of breaching the spirit of the game and forfeited 50 per cent of his match fee as a result.
“It seems to be the case with Kieron and a lot of Australian players,” Starc said when asked about the theatrics and animosity involving Pollard who also clashed with Australian batsman David Warner in the Indians’ previous match against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
“But I don’t think you can go throwing your bat at anyone.”
Further insult was added to Pollard’s fiscal injury when he and nine of his teammates copped a further 25 per cent reduction in their match payments after their captain Rohit Sharma was found to have overseen a slow over rate during the match.
As it was Sharma’s second such infringement for in IPL 7 he was fined a total of 24 lakh rupees (around $A40 000) while the other members of his team were each stung a quarter of that amount.
Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli was also fined for his team’s slow over rate, but because it was his first such transgression of the tournament he was required to pay half as much as his rival skipper.