Reece Topley ruled out of remainder of West Indies T20Is due to knee injury

Gros Islet (St. Lucia):  England pacer Reece Topley has been ruled out of the remainder of the T20I series against West Indies due to knee injury and will fly back home from St. Lucia. The speedster suffered the injury while bowling in the series opener in Barbados last week. Topley had also missed the second and third T20I owing to the same injury. “Reece Topley has been ruled out of the remainder of the T20I series against West Indies through injury, and is to fly home from St Lucia,” England and Wales Cricket Board said in a post on X. This setback is the latest in a string of injuries that have plagued 30-year-old Topley’s international career. Earlier, Topley was fined 15% of his match fee after breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct during the first T20I in Barbados. The sanction came after Topley was found to have breached Article 2.2, which pertains to “abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment, or fixtures and fittings during an international match.” The incident took place while England were fielding, with Topley visibly frustrated as he walked up the pavilion staircase, grabbing a chair and striking it aggressively against the handrail. In addition to the financial penalty, Topley received one demerit point, his first in a 24-month period. Topley accepted the charges levelled by match officials, including on-field umpires Leslie Reifer and Zahid Bassarath, third umpire Gregory Brathwaite, and fourth umpire Deighton Butler. Richie Richardson, of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Referees, proposed the sanction, and Topley’s acceptance of the decision made a formal hearing unnecessary. With three-wicket win in the third T20I, England have attained an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series. –IANS