‘He didn't do that intentionally’ - Mehidy Hasan defends Mushfiqur Rahim following uncommon dismissal

On Day 1 of the second Test between Bangladesh and New Zealand in Dhaka, veteran wicketkeeper-batter Mushfiqur Rahim got out in a bizarre fashion. During an intense partnership, the 36-year-old tried to grab the ball which was close to the stumps after playing a backfoot defence off Kyle Jamieson’s bouncer. The Kiwis appealed following the incident as the on-field umpire gave him out and Mishfiqur had to walk back after scoring 35 runs.

Meanwhile, after the day’s play, Mehidy Hasan defended Mushfiqur and stated that it was completely unintentional. He also drew parallels with Angelo Mathews’ ‘Timed Out’ dismissal in the recently concluded ODI World Cup and mentioned that it happened with the flow. Hasan added that Mushfiqur couldn’t make a quick decision and hence was given out.

“Look this one was not intentional, it just happened with the flow. Nobody wants to get out knowingly. There are lot of things going around at the back of the mind during different situations in a game. In the World Cup, we got a timed-out dismissal against a Sri Lankan batter in our favour but today what happened with Mushfiq bhai, it all happened in a flow.

“When I am batting after playing a shot and when the ball is coming near the stumps, have to make quick decisions about what you can do and what you can't. Certainly, he didn't do that intentionally,” Hasan was quoted as saying by NDTV.

We believed that we could make life difficult for them if we bowled in the right areas: Mehidy Hasan

After getting bundled out for 172 runs in the first innings, Bangladesh made a strong comeback with the ball. Mehidy Hasan picked up three wickets while Taijul Islam picked up two wickets as New Zealand were 55/5 at the end of the day’s play. The visiting team were trailing by 117 runs as Najmul Shanto-led side will aim to win the match and seal the series.

Meanwhile, after Day 1 concluded, Hasan stated that they are aware of the conditions really well and tried to utilize their experience to put New Zealand under pressure.

“We believed that we could make life difficult for them if we bowled in the right areas," Mehidy said after the day's play. We struggled against their spinners. We know these conditions pretty well, so that gave our bowlers the confidence that we could take more advantage from this pitch,” Hasan said.