"Please don't break down": Mustafizur's message to David Warner

In the last few days, the whole cricketing world has been taken by storm because of the ball tampering issue. Following Steve Smith’s confirmation of their involvement in the deliberate attempt to mishandle the ball in the third test against South Africa, both he and his vice-captain David Warner stepped down from the position of captaincy in their respective IPL teams – Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad.

However, it was later announced that along with being banned from international cricket for one year, they will not be able to play in this year’s IPL as well. The social media has ever since been divided between utter resentment and cordial solidarity over the matter. Bangladeshi bowler Mistafizur Rahman falls in the second category.

The two players bonded during the ninth edition of the IPL when Rahman played under Warner for the champion team Sunrisers Hyderabad. Rahman’s bowling was a key factor for the team’s success, and the two’s camaraderie was noticeable on and off the field. In fact, once during the 2016 IPL, Warner even tweeted that he was trying to learn Rahman’s mother tongue Bengali, because of his unfamiliarity with English.

On Saturday, after David Warner’s press conference took place in which he accepted his responsibility in the incident, Mustafizur took to Twitter in support of the Aussie southpaw.

Mustafizur mentioned the support and inspiration he got from Warner back when they were teammates for Hyderabad. His tweet read: “@davidwarner31 means a smiling face to me, who always inspires and provides support to do others level best things. It’s really tough to accept your current condition. Please don’t break down; stay strong & positive mate. Will miss your guidance in this year’s IPL. :(”

.@davidwarner31 means a smiling face to me, who always inspires and provides support to do others level best things. It's really tough to accept your current condition. Please don't break down; stay strong & positive mate. Will miss your guidance in this year's IPL. ?

— Mustafizur Rahman (@Mustafiz90) March 31, 2018

The leftie pacer will be joining the defending champions Mumbai Indians for the upcoming IPL season, under the leadership of Rohit Sharma.

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