By Scott Heinrich

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If any evidence was needed that the International Cricket Council planned to apply its beefed-up code of conduct, events in Pakistan recently have provided it in spades.

A truly compelling series in which South Africa pegged Pakistan back after losing the first two matches was overshadowed by affairs off the field.

Four players - including three South Africans - were hauled before ICC match referee Clive Lloyd, who applied the letter of the law and punished them all for behavioural breaches.

The off-shoot is a war of words between the United Cricket Board of South Africa (UCB) and the ICC, which is standing steadfastly behind its code of conduct.

In June the ICC sat down and discussed the code, coming to the conclusion it was not resolute enough and that for the image of the game it needed attention.

The harder line manifested itself last week in Pakistan, where Andrew Hall felt the full force of the ICC for elbowing batsman Yousuf Youhana.

After the usually squeaky clean Shaun Pollock had been penalised for dissent in the third match, Hall's two-Test ban - in addition to being suspended with Graeme Smith for the series-deciding match in Rawalpindi - was the straw that broke South Africa's back.

STAND BY YOUR PLAN This was as a result of the players' actions, not of a failure of the code ICC chief exec Malcolm Speed

The UCB appealed against Hall's verdict and cried foul, its chief executive Gerald Majola accusing the ICC of inconsistencies in the application of the code of conduct.

"While I in no way condone any behaviour which breaches the code of conduct, I am extremely concerned at the inconsistent manner in which it has been applied, particularly this year," Majola said.

"There are several examples of this and I shall be taking the matter up through the correct channels at the ICC.

"While I accept that a sanction was appropriate for the behaviour of Smith and Hall, I am concerned that officials are not showing balance in treating players fairly or in handing down consistent punishments for similar offences.

"In fact, this particular altercation was ignored by the match officials on the day and charges were only laid by the ICC after some time."

One new feature of the code allows the ICC five days after an incident - where before it had one - to bring charges to players. In essence, the ICC gave itself more rope to hang the guilty when it sees fit.

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Majola's criticism brought an instant response from ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed, who pointed out that South Africa had voiced no concerns over the elite panel of umpires at a meeting last month.

"It is difficult for me to respond directly to what Mr Majola has said as he has elected to raise a concern without providing any specific evidence to support his comments," Speed said.

"The code of conduct was discussed at great length at the ICC's June board meeting and was strengthened as a result of concerns identified then. Upholding the code is also a shared responsibility.

"While I can understand that South Africa would be disappointed at having two players suspended for a crucial game, this was as a result of the players' actions, not of a failure of the code."