Towhid Hridoy, a batter for Bangladesh, expressed his dissatisfaction with the umpiring standards during their game against South Africa at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York on Monday. He believed that these officiating decisions played a crucial role in their loss.
During the critical 17th over of their chase, Ottneil Baartman delivered a ball that struck Mahmudullah's pad and deflected towards the fine leg boundary, earning what seemed like four runs. However, South Africa's appeal for an LBW was upheld by the on-field umpire. Although the decision was overturned upon review, the initial call meant the ball was declared dead immediately, nullifying the four runs. Ultimately, Bangladesh lost the match by that exact margin.
Hridoy reflected on the situation, remarking that the umpire's call had not been favourable for them in such a closely contested match. He suggested that those four runs could have significantly impacted the outcome.
He acknowledged that the rules were beyond his control but highlighted the importance of those runs in a low-scoring game. Hridoy noted that umpires, being human, are prone to errors and mentioned that several wides went uncalled. He believed these close decisions, including the missed four runs and the two uncalled wides, were critical in a tight game. Hridoy, who scored 37 off 34 balls, also mentioned his own dismissal, where he was given out LBW to Kagiso Rabada, even though replays showed the ball barely clipping the leg stump.
Hridoy felt confident with their score and regretted not being able to finish the match. He stated that it was challenging for a new batter to quickly adapt to the conditions and believed that it was his responsibility to see the game through from that position.