Bangladesh’s veteran batsman Liton Das backed captain Mehdi Hasan Miraj for the controversial Salman Ali Aga run-out incident. While most of the cricket fraternity expressed outrage over the incident against the dignity of cricket, Das said that he acted as per the cricket rules.
Hitting back at the critics, Liton Das strongly claimed that Miraz did nothing wrong because an out is an out; There was no lack of sportsmanship in the run out.
Salman Ali Aga tried to help; In return the bowler ran him out
In the second ODI of the three-match series, Bangladesh captain Mehdi Hasan Miraz dismissed Pakistan captain Salman Ali Aga in a controversial runout. In the first innings of the match held in Dhaka on March 13, Salman Ali Aga, in a friendly gesture, tried to pick up the ball from the field and give it to bowler Miraj. The ball stopped in front of Agha’s shoes after hitting his pads at the non-striker’s end.
When Agha went to collect the ball, he was far out of the crease. Before the batsman could catch the ball, Miraz in a quick reaction picked up the ball and immediately threw it on the stumps to run out. Agha was then batting on 64 off 62 balls, being a well-set batsman.
After a brief discussion with the field umpire and the captain of the opposing team, Aga burst into anger. Out of anger and emotions, he threw it on the ground before finding his gear.
Out: Bangladesh national cricket team keeper-batsman Liton Das
Agha was run out as per rules; The umpires would not have made any mistake in declaring Salman Ali Aga out. But the way Mirza dismissed the batsman created widespread controversy. Former cricketers like Mohammad Aamir and Mohammad Kaif strongly condemned this act and said that it was absolutely the wrong way to get rid of a batsman.
However, Bangladesh’s experienced wicketkeeper batsman Liton Das says that Mirza did nothing wrong. He saw the opportunity and acted accordingly.
Liton Das said in an interview with Daily Star Bangladesh, “First of all, no one came here to play the Charity League; it is an international match. Since the dismissal is under the rules, I don’t see from any angle that the spirit of the game has been compromised. Everyone is entitled to their personal opinion. But as players, we felt an out is an out.”
The third ODI is looking like a final between the two teams in Dhaka.
Meanwhile, that runout did not help the home team win the match. With the help of half-centuries from Maaz Sadaqat and Agha, Pakistan scored 274 runs for 10 wickets. Under wet clouds, Bangladesh could only score 114 runs before losing their tenth wicket.
With Pakistan as the winner of the second match, the 3-match ODI series is level at 1-1 with one more match left to be played. All preparations are on to hold the third match on March 15.
Read more: Salman Ali Aga criticizes Mehdi Hasan Miraz for ‘killing’ spirit of cricket in run-out drama
