Watch: Hassan Ali picked up the prestigious wicket of Alastair Cook in the County Championship yesterday (May 12), pinning the ex-England opener lbw and wheeling away in a brazen trademark celebrappeal.
Hassan trapped Cook for 18 in Essex’s second innings at Edgbaston, when Essex had reached 56 for the loss of two wickets. Cook was batting with Dan Lawrence who was new to the crease and still only on two when he became Warwickshire’s third wicket to fall inside the first 20 overs of the innings.
Hassan bowled from round the wicket to the left-handed Cook, pitching the ball on a full length and trapping the opener on his crease. The ball rapped Cook on the front pad, with Hassan, the Warwickshire slip fielders and keeper Michael Burgess all going up in appeal.
Hassan felt no need to turn and ask the umpire whether the ball would have gone on to hit leg stump, running down the wicket to celebrate with his teammates without checking whether the umpire’s finger was raised behind him.
On his part, Cook also seemed fairly certain the delivery would have knocked his stumps over. He barely looked at the umpire before walking off the field, instead turning and walking off with a brief glance in the direction of the umpire’s upwards pointing finger.
The wicket was Hassan’s third in the match and 14th for Warwickshire this season. He has played four matches in the competition for the Edgbaston-based side, having joined the club after representing Lancashire last season. Earlier in the contest, he scored a game-changing half-century, scoring 53* off 37 balls to rescue Warwickshire from 154-8. They ended up 242 all out with a first-innings lead of 116.
