Bangladesh in T20 World Cup 2022: Crybabies or fighting for fairness

There are many reasons why cricket is called ‘a gentlemen’s game’. One main reason is that in cricket, whenever the umpire rules a batsman out, he is to leave the ground, no questions asked.

In that sense, Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan’s action on Sunday didn’t completely abide by cricket’s ‘gentlemanly code’.

In a high stakes match against Pakistan, Shakib was given out leg before wicket on the very first ball he faced.

Shakib referred the decision to the third umpire, who upheld the original decision.

According cricket’s ‘gentlemanly’ doctrine, Shakib should’ve left the field immediately after the third umpire’s decision.

But that wasn’t the case. Shakib looked shocked that the original decision was upheld and was reluctant to leave the field.

Shakib did, in the end, leave the field, but only after discussions with the on-field umpire and the opposition team players.

Shakib’s action in general context would be in violation of cricket’s ethics. But on Sunday, his reaction wasn’t at all out of place.

If anything, his reaction to his dismissal could be termed as restrained as everyone else in the ground, whether they were sitting in the Bangladesh camp or the Pakistani dugout, were dumbfounded with the strange decision from the third umpire.

The only reason there is not a bigger hue and cry about Shakib’s dismissal in the Bangladesh cricket fraternity, is because Bangladesh eventually lost the match by a big margin.

When Shakib lost his wicket, Bangladesh were three down for 73 runs inside 11 overs. The Tigers ended up scoring just 127-8 in their 20 overs, after being well on track to post a score around 150 at the halfway stage of their innings.

After some jitters, Pakistan chased down the meagre target with 11 balls to spare and five wickets in hand.

So, it’s hard to argue that Shakib’s dismissal is the sole reason why Bangladesh lost the match.

But this isn’t the first time Bangladesh felt hard done by an umpiring decision in this year’s T20 World Cup.

Before losing to Pakistan, Bangladesh pushed India to its limit at the Adelaide Oval, eventually falling short by five runs in a rain affected match.

In that game, Bangladesh’s appeals for fake fielding against Virat Kohli fell on deaf ears. Had the umpires penalised India for the incident, that ball would’ve been declared dead and Bangladesh would’ve been awarded five runs.

Moreover, the match had been stopped after the seventh over in Bangladesh’s innings due to rain. Thanks to Liton Das’s blistering half-century, Bangladesh were 17 runs ahead of the Duckworth and Lewis score, meaning had the match not restarted, Bangladesh would’ve been declared winners by 17 runs in DLS.

But the rain stopped and play resumed, with Bangladesh being set a revised target of 151 in 16 overs.

The Bangladesh players, especially skipper Shakib, were not happy with the umpire’s decision to resume the match so quickly as several parts of the outfield were still quite wet.

But they had to accept the umpire’s wishes and get on the field to chase a target that was still within their reach.

Liton, Bangladesh’s best hope of chasing down the target, slipped twice while running between the wickets after the resumption of play. In the first slip, he hurt his hamstring. The second time he slipped, he lost his wicket in a run out.

Indian fielders had to field on a slippery outfield and their bowlers had to grip a wet ball, both very difficult tasks. But the Indian players rose to the challenges of the conditions whereas the Bangladesh innings fell apart after Liton’s dismissal.

After the match, the Bangladesh cricket fraternity were vocal about the fake fielding incident, with the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) saying that they would take the matter up to the ICC.

But world cricket media and analysts saw Bangladesh’s reaction as the whining of a sore loser and not as a team asking for fairness.

Bangladesh’s chance of qualifying to the semifinals was next to none after losing to India, as they not only had to beat Pakistan in the next game but also hope that either India lose badly to Zimbabwe or South Africa slip up against the Netherlands, both of which looked highly unlikely.

But cricket lived up to its reputation of being a game of ‘glorious uncertainties’ as the Dutch defeated the Proteas and knocked them out of the T20 World Cup.

An opportunity opened up for Bangladesh and also Pakistan.

A win would’ve taken Bangladesh to the semifinal of a T20 World Cup for the first time, whereas, a win for Pakistan would open up a chance of an India-Pakistan final. The latter scenario, obviously, is more lucrative for the ICC.

Now, one would have to be completely devoid of any sense of intrigue if they don’t get even a faint whiff of a conspiracy when they see such an appalling decision from the third umpire in such a crucial match, favouring the stronger team and hurting the weaker one.

But Bangladesh as a cricketing nation is now in a position where they can’t even speak up about unfair calls made against them in crucial matches in fear of being labelled as ‘cry babies’.

In every global sport around the world, the bigger teams often get some ‘lucky’ breaks in crucial matches.

Whether it was the blatant handball from Thierry Henry which was overlooked to allow France to win the FIFA World Cup playoff match against Ireland in 2009 or Chelsea not getting a clear penalty against Barcelona in the Champions League semifinal in the same year, examples of poor calls from match officials to help the stronger team win crucial games is plenty in every sport.

But now, if a Bangladesh fan even suggests that their team was treated unfairly by the umpires, they will be lumped with fanatic Bangladesh cricket fans, who see conspiracy whenever the Tigers lose a close match.

Bangladesh is not a better T20I team then India or Pakistan nor is there any guaranty that Bangladesh would win either of those games had the poor decisions not been made.

But it’s not a matter of winning or losing, it’s about the game’s governing body ensuring an even playing field for every team, giving them an equal chance to flourish and having the right to point out when they have been wronged by a decision and not be criticised for asking for fairness.

For cricket to remain a gentleman’s game, the people governing it need to act gentlemanly.