Published: Jun 13, 2016, 11:30 AM (IST)
Edited: Jun 13, 2016, 11:30 AM (IST)
There have been numerous incidents of cricket matches being interrupted by passionate crowds in the past. Till the 1990s, the crowd would invariably ran to the field and mob the players after the conclusion of the game. However, stringent security measures by the administrators have ensured that such incidents do not occur now. But still on some occasions, the crowd getting into the act results in match getting halted or worse, being called off. ALSO READ: Shakib-Al-Hasan wishes to erase the dreadful World T20 memory against India.
On June 12, a Dhaka Premier League (DPL) match in Savar, Bangladesh got called off after a poor umpiring decision resulted in crowd furore, as reported by ESPNCricinfo. The match was being played between Abahani Limited and Prime Dolweshwar Sporting Club (PDSC) and had players like Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Taskin Ahmed and India’s Sachin Baby participating in it. Batting first, Tamim’s Abahani managed 191 all out and it was in the 16th over of PDSC’s innings that the commotion started.
When a stumping appeal against Raqibul Hasan off left-arm spinner Saqlain Sajib’s bowling was turned down by umpire Gazi Sohel, the Abahani players protested and their fans began to boo the umpires. Baby was at the non-striker end when the incident happened. Soon, the crowd abuse got the better of the umpires Sohel and Tanvir Ahmed as they decided to leave the field after consulting with match referee Montu Dutta. ALSO READ: Never took any formal cricket training, says Sachin Baby ahead of IPL 2016 final.
After a brief halt, PDSC were asked to chase a revised target as per the Duckworth/Lewis (D/L) method, but they refused saying weather was not a factor here and the interruption was not their fault. “Why should we go by the Duckworth/Lewis method? Our club officials are not going to abide by it today. The match didn’t stop because of us. What happened was quite unfortunate,” PDSC’s coach Mizanur Rahman Babul was quoted as saying by a report in ESPNCricinfo.
When the match was stopped, PDSC were 2 for 59 after the 17th over in pursuit of 192 from 45 overs. The decision to continue with the game on the reserve day shall be taken by Cricket Committee of Dhaka Metropolis, the BCB standing committee that runs the league. It is notable here that a lot of Indian cricketers including the likes of Yusuf Pathan, Manoj Tiwary, Rajat Bhatia and most recently Dinesh Karthik have signed up for the 50-over DPL this season following the relaxation of the BCCI rule which stopped players from participating in overseas List-A tournaments.
