Watch: Mohammad Rizwan shared a laugh with Aiden Markram during Pakistan’s World Cup clash against South Africa after throwing the stumps down with the ball already dead.
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The game was a tense one, and crucial in the race for the World Cup semi-finals, with the Proteas chasing 271 to win. Markram held the key as the only South African to make it to fifty, but he still had time for a joke with Rizwan.
Markram played and missed at the first ball of the 17th over, bowled by Haris Rauf, before regaining his ground and looking back at Rizwan to ensure the ball was dead. He then left his crease, with the Pakistan wicketkeeper throwing the ball in the direction of the stumps – though most likely just attempting to return the ball to the bowler.
Instead, he hit the target, with Pakistan’s fielders and Markram himself initially confused. A quick look at Rizwan, beaming with a smile, confirmed there was no attempt at a dismissal, with Rizwan and Markram enjoying a light-hearted chat as the bails were reset.
The topic of when exactly a ball is dead has been a hotly discussed one in recent times, with Alex Carey’s controversial stumping of Jonny Bairstow, standing back at the end of an over lighting the touchpaper on the 2023 Ashes. More recently, there were murmurs over Kusal Mendis’ run out of Adil Rashid at the non-striker’s end in Sri Lanka’s World Cup defeat of England.
Watch the fun Rizwan-Markram moment below:
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