Sydney Sixers captain Moises Henriques believes the four-game BBL ban handed to Tom Curran for umpire intimidation amounts to character assassination.
English import Curran was charged with a level-three offence under clause 2.17 in the code of conduct, announced on Thursday.
The charge stemmed from an incident during the warm-up before the Sixers' clash with the Hobart Hurricanes in Launceston on December 11.
In footage released late Thursday night, Curran was involved in an altercation with an umpire after completing a practice bowling run-up in which he ran onto the pitch.
He was instructed not to enter the pitch, then went to the other end to complete another practice run-up.
The Sixers are appealing the ban and hope to have Curran back to face the Melbourne Stars on Boxing Day, but they went into Friday's clash against the Adelaide Strikers without him.
Speaking before play began on Friday, Henriques said the playing group had rallied behind the English allrounder in the days since the incident.
"It’s been a pretty tough time for TC (Curran) over the past 11 or 12 days sitting on this," Henriques told Fox Cricket.
"Knowing what he’s like, he’s taken this to heart and he’s really worried about the assassination of his character.
"(Umpire intimidation is) a big claim, so I’m wishing him the best."
Henriques believed footage of the incident lacked context, and he was confused about the decision to impose such a long ban.
"I'm very surprised," he said.
"We obviously don't condone any untoward behaviour towards the umpire or any umpiring staff, but I still can't quite understand the decision.
"I just can't help but think we haven't quite understood the context of the altercation.
"(Curran) is a great man. He's a real leader in the community, he's a leader amongst our team.
"I'm still struggling to comprehend that penalty for what he's done."
Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley refused to comment on the specifics of the incident when pressed on Friday, but warned players they needed to respect match officials.
"My feeling is that players really need to respect the umpires and the match referees," he said.
"I think that those processes are in place for good reason, and my overarching message to everybody, and this is not just at the elite level, but at the community level where many of the umpires and officials give their time as volunteers.
"Respect is fundamental to the spirit of cricket and it's fundamental to the laws of the game.
"Players are role models in society and it's really important they show respect."
