Malachi Jones landed himself in hot water for unsportsmanlike conduct during the national cricket team’s Bermuda Premier League opener against Barbados at White Hill Field yesterday.

The experienced all-rounder received an official reprimand for committing a Level One offence for his part in a heated verbal exchange with Barbados bowler Zidane Clarke after being dismissed.

The incident flared when Jones skied a full toss and then swung his bat at the ball again as the fielders attempted to take the catch.

He is then alleged to have said “bad words” to Clarke, who took issue with his rival’s actions before others stepped in between the two players to prevent matters from escalating.

“Basically what happened was after hitting the ball in the air he still wanted to hit it again as he was so angry,” Bermuda coach Niraj Odedra told The Royal Gazette.

“He was angry and when the bowler said ‘why are you in the wicketkeeper’s way?’ he must have said something and that’s why the umpire gave him a Level One.

“He should have not done that because it’s not right. It’s like obstructing the fielder as well if he would have dropped the catch because it looked like he was trying to hit the ball again and everybody saw it.

“He was at fault and I even had a word with the bowler. I asked him what he said and he told me that he definitely said some bad words.

“I had a word with the bowler, had a word with the umpires and had a word with Jones and came to the conclusion that whatever he did could have been avoided.

“The umpire gave me the document and asked could I get him to sign it and if he agrees to it we are going to give him the Level One, which is a warning. He is not going to get suspended or banned but this is a warning not to do it again.”

Odedra admitted he was upset by Jones’s actions.

“I was not happy because we are taking baby steps and I asked all the people to stay away from any sort of incident that can happen in the heat of the moment,” he said.

“I want everybody to behave in a proper way so that we don’t get into any sort of incidents. I want to try to avoid all these incidents, which we don’t need in cricket, and senior people like him should be more careful.

“I agree with the umpires and we have to make sure none of that nonsense comes from my players.”

Jones, who represented Bermuda at the 2007 ICC World Cup in the Caribbean, took two wickets and scored ten runs in the island’s 40-run defeat against Barbados.