A one-of-a-kind run-out caused a bizarre spirit of cricket debate in Bangladesh’s second one-day international against Pakistan in Dhaka.
Batting first, Pakistan had built a platform, moving to 231 for four in the 39th over, with Salman Ali Agha, their captain at the recent T20 World Cup, well placed on 64.
But disaster struck for Pakistan when Agha succumbed to an unusual – and very dozy – dismissal.
Mehidy Hasan Miraz, the Bangladesh captain, was bowling his off-spin from over the wicket to Mohammad Rizwan, with Agha at the non-striker’s end.
Rizwan defended the ball back down the pitch, coincidentally towards where Agha was standing. The ball rolled towards Agha, and Mehidy moved to his right to field it. Agha went to pick the ball up, presumably (and wrongly) thinking it was a dead ball, but was beaten to it by Miraz, who under-armed it on to the stumps, leaving Agha a long way out of his ground.
The local umpire Tanvir Ahmed sent the decision upstairs, but TV umpire Kumar Dharmasena had no hesitation in giving it out. Agha was dumbfounded, and threw his gloves to the ground, before leaving the field in fury. Mehidy and his Bangladesh team-mates appeared unrepentant.
To add insult to injury, later in the over, Mehidy picked up the wicket of Rizwan. Agha and Rizwan had shared a stand of over 109, but their strong position was in danger of slipping away. Having lost the first match of the series emphatically, Pakistan posted 274.
Ramiz Raja, the former Pakistan captain, was not impressed. “Within the technical range, as far as the laws are concerned, he is out,” he said. “But sportsmanship? I’m afraid that got a massive hit. He was just about to pick up the ball and give it back to the bowler, and the bowler felt there was a chance of a run-out. So you’ve got to feel for him.”
