The Afghanistan-Bangladesh T20 World Cup clash was controversial when Afghanistan’s Gulbadin Naib fell to the ground, seemingly due to injury. The incident sparked debates over whether Naib was “faking” the injury to waste time.
Naib, who was fielding in the slip cordon, complained of cramps during the 12th over bowled by spinner Noor Ahmad. The controversy erupted after Bangladesh captain Trott was seen on camera asking his players to slow down, as the team had fallen behind on the Duckworth-Lewis par score in the rain-hit Super 8 clash.
Commentators quickly criticized Naib’s actions, with Simon Doull saying,
“The coach sends a message out to say slow it down, slow it down, and the first slip just dives on the ground needlessly. That is unacceptable.”
According to the ICC’s Code of Conduct, “time-wasting” is considered a Level 1 or 2 offense, with the maximum punishment being a 100% match-fee fine and two suspension points. However, no such penalty was given in the Afghanistan-Bangladesh match, and the ICC has not opened an investigation against Naib.
The incident has sparked a debate, and the cricketing world will watch closely to see if any further action is taken against the Afghan all-rounder.
