Pakistan have reportedly filed an official complaint with match referee Neeyamur Rashid after a controversial moment during the third ODI against Bangladesh in Mirpur. The issue revolves around a decision made by on-field umpire Kumar Dharmasena, who allowed Bangladesh to take an LBW review on the second-last ball of the final over.
Pakistan's take on Bangladesh's wide review
According to a report by ESPNcricinfo, the Pakistan team management believes Bangladesh asked for the review only after a replay of the delivery was shown on the stadium’s big screen.
What happened?
The incident took place during the penultimate ball of the 50th over while Pakistan were chasing. Before that delivery, Pakistan needed 12 runs from two balls. Bangladesh captain Rishad Hossain bowled a flighted delivery on the leg stump that turned away from Shaheen Afridi toward the leg side.
The on-field umpire initially called the ball a wide. Soon after, Bangladesh decided to take a review for LBW, even though the delivery did not appear to be heading towards the stumps.
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When the replays were shown on the big screen, it became clear that the ball had actually made contact with Shaheen Afridi’s bat. Because of that, the umpire had to change the original wide call. The moment caused visible frustration for Shaheen, as the equation then became 12 runs needed from the final ball.
On the last delivery, Shaheen Afridi was stumped, and Bangladesh went on to win the match by 11 runs, sealing the ODI series 2–1.
Here's what rule says
The standard rules say that teams must decide whether to take a review before any replays are shown to players. This rule is meant to prevent teams from using footage on the big screen to influence their decision.
Pakistan's take
However, Pakistan reportedly argued that the correct procedure may not have been followed. They believe the big screen replay, which showed the ball passing close to the bat, might have given Bangladesh a reason to suspect there was an edge.
Pakistan are also said to have questioned whether the review was taken within the allowed 15-second time limit. Since there was no timer visible in the broadcast, it has not been possible to independently confirm if the review was requested within the permitted window.
For now, it remains unclear what action the Pakistan Cricket Board wants the match referee to take regarding the incident.