I need to remain calm, says Shakib Al Hasan after ugly fracas mars Bangladesh's victory over Sri Lanka

Sport360 staff 12:44 17/03/2018
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  • Scenes of the aftermath. Image credit - @anandvasu Twitter handle.

    Ugly scenes marred Bangladesh’s dramatic victory over hosts Sri Lanka in the Nidahas T20I tri-series on Friday evening.

    Mahmudullah hit a six off the penultimate ball to get Bangladesh over the finish line and earn them a place in the finals against India with a two-wicket win.

    There was plenty of drama in the final over of the match where tensions went through the roof. In the second ball of the over, Isuru Udana delivered a bouncer. Batsman Mustafizur Rahman was run-out while trying to sneak in a bye and all hell broke loose.

    With Udana already having bowled one bouncer in the over, Mahmudullah implored the umpire to call a no-ball for height in an animated discussion. While this was taking place, Bangladesh substitute fielder Nurul Hasan had made his way to the field with drinks and soon became involved in a heated argument with several Sri Lanka fielders including Thisara Perera.

    After some shoving and pushing, the substitute was escorted off the field by the Sri Lankans before Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan entered into an argument with reserve umpire Lyndon Hannibal on the boundary ropes.

    Shakib ultimately waved at his two batsmen to pull them off the field in protest, a decision they reluctantly complied with. It was only after some intervention from the on-field umpires that led to the Bangladesh skipper ultimately relenting and allowing play to resume.

    However, that was not the end of the saga and there would be more animosity on show between the two sides once Mahmudullah hit the winning runs with that six. As Bangladesh’s bench charged to the field in euphoric celebrations, Sri Lanka batsman Kusal Mendis was seen in a heated altercation with some of them and had to be restrained by Tamim Iqbal.

    After the ugly scenes, Shakib presented a much more mature face at the post-match press conference and admitted that he allowed things to get out of hand.

    “I don’t want to talk about it, but what happened was that the square-leg umpire called a no-ball and after a discussion they cancelled it. I didn’t think it was the right decision. I don’t know what happened after the first ball, which was a bouncer. But after the second ball, the umpire called a no-ball. We are all human, we should take it in the chin and move forward,” he said.

    “Many things happened that shouldn’t have happened. I need to remain calm. I was overjoyed. Excitement was there. I must know how to react next time. I will be careful.

    “What happens in the field should never spill over off the field. To be honest, we are all good friends. We see each other in the Bangladesh Premier League and Dhaka Premier League. The two boards have great relations. We help each other a lot. Just like I would want my team to win at all cost, they would have the same feeling. I am sure that both teams will never let it go off the field.”

    The Bangladesh dressing room was a scene of carnage after the win with the glass door being shattered completely. ICC match referee Chris Broad had examined the CCTV footage to determine the responsible party for the vandalism.

    The Bangladesh team management is understood to have offered to pay Sri Lanka Cricket for the damage to property.

    In the aftermath of the dramatic finish, Shakib has been handed over one demerit point along with a 25 per cent fine in his match fees while substitute fielder Nurul Islam was also given a demerit point for his role in the fracas.

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