Correspondent, 21 October: A bizarre event unfolded on the cricket field during an ongoing ODI tri-series match between Afghanistan and Zimbabwe. A batter was clean bowled on a delivery that was neither a no-ball nor a wide, yet the umpires declared him not out. The dramatic twist occurred because a towel fell from the bowler's waist, denying the Afghan bowler a rightful wicket.
The unusual incident took place on the final delivery of the eighth over during Zimbabwe's innings. As Afghanistan fast bowler Azmatullah Omarzai ran in to deliver the ball, the towel tucked into his waist dropped to the ground. At the exact same time, Zimbabwe batter Brian Bennett attempted to play a pull shot. The ball hit his bat and crashed directly into the stumps, dislodging the bails. While the Afghan players began celebrating the wicket, Bennett immediately complained to the umpires that his concentration had been disrupted by the falling towel.
Following this complaint, the umpires held a discussion and declared the delivery a 'dead ball', keeping Bennett not out. According to Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) regulations, umpires have the authority to call a dead ball depending on the situation if an incident disrupts a batter's focus. However, commentators raised questions about the umpires' decision. One commentator expressed the opinion that if Bennett felt distracted, he should have stepped away before playing the shot; instead, he attempted to play the ball, got bowled, and only then brought up the issue of the towel.
Bennett ultimately failed to capitalize much on this bizarre lifeline, as he was dismissed for 31 runs. Zimbabwe's entire team collapsed for just 136 runs, resulting in a resounding 158-run victory for Afghanistan. Earlier in the match, Afghanistan had amassed a massive total of 294 runs, powered by Sediqullah Atal's 102 runs and Ibrahim Zadran's 90 runs. In the bowling department, Rashid Khan played a crucial role in securing the win by taking 4 wickets while conceding just 17 runs.
