Abhishek was fined 25 per cent of the match fees for his actions and also given one demerit point.

“Abhishek Sharma, All-rounder, Sunrisers Hyderabad has been fined 25 per cent of his match fees and has also accumulated one demerit point for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct during his team’s match against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Thursday,” the IPL released a statement.

“He admitted to the Level 1 offence under Article 2.3 and accepted the Match Referee’s sanction. For Level 1 breaches of the Code of Conduct, the Match Referee’s decision is final and binding,” it added.

Abhishek looked in imperious touch at Eden Gardens but missed out on his half-century and was dismissed on 48 by Blessing Muzarabani, courtesy a diving catch by Varun, which was a close call taken from the umpire.

Blessing Muzarabani led the effort with four wickets, while Vaibhav Arora picked up two. Kartik Tyagi and Anukul Roy chipped in with a wicket each.

In reply, KKR folded for 161 in 16 overs with Angkrish Raghuvanshi top-scoring with a 29-ball 52. For SRH, Jaydev Unadkat (3/21) snapped three wickets, while Nitish Kumar Reddy (2/17) and Eshan Malinga (2/14) picked two wickets each.