Pakistan’s Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan walk off the field at the end of the third day of the second Test cricket match between Pakistan and South Africa (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed) The third day in Rawalpindi was full of drama, but one moment at the very end highlighted his unusual circumstances. South Africa dominated the final delivery and Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan drove the ball from Keshav Maharaj to cover. Without attempting to escape, Rizwan casually turned and tapped the bat on the off-stump in a smooth motion, dislodging the bails. South Africa wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne immediately called for a wicket, convinced that Rizwan had broken his stumps. However, the ball was technically still in play – the fielder who shot had not yet returned it to the keeper and the umpires had not called for stumps. At the bowler’s end, umpire Sharfuddoula quickly dismissed the appeal with a smile, supported by square-leg umpire Chris Brown. Reports suggest that the South African players were not told directly why the appeal was rejected. Although it is unusual for a batsman to remove the bails with his bat, the laws of cricket support Rizwan’s action. Rule 35.1 specifies that a batsman may bat for the wicket only during the bowler’s stride, when attempting to bat or run immediately afterwards or at the second or subsequent strike to guard the wicket. Rizwan’s action met none of these conditions. South Africa seems to have taken the incident in stride. All-rounder Senuran Muthusamy later admitted that he was too far away from the game to notice exactly what had happened, suggesting that the team was not particularly distressed. Pakistan held a narrow lead of 23 runs with six wickets remaining, keeping South Africa’s hopes of leveling the series alive.
