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| February 8, 2006 | Wednesday | Muharram 9, 1427 |
Inzamam learns rule hard way
ISLAMABAD, Feb 7: Pakistan captain Inzamamul Haq has conceded umpires were right to give him out for obstructing the field in the first one-dayer against India.
“It is true, I was not aware of how this rule works but I know now they were right in giving me out,” he said on Tuesday.
Inzamam had pushed a ball from Indian pacer Sreesanth to mid-off and stepped a couple of yards out of his crease. An alert Suresh Raina threw the ball at the stumps, but Inzamam blocked the throw with his bat while still out of the crease.
The Indians appealed and umpires Simon Taufel and Asad Rauf gave Inzamam out.
The Pakistan captain said later he could not understand how the law worked and met with the umpires and the match referee after the match to get an explanation.
“It is a strange way to get out and I guess the way I got out left me surprised,” he said.
He is only the third batsman in one-day cricket history to be given out for obstructing the field after team mate Rameez Raja and India’s Mohinder Amarnath suffered the same fate.
Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer supported the umpires’ decision but said he was just relieved his team had gone one up in the five-match one-day series.
Pakistan were declared winners by seven runs under the Duckworth Lewis scoring method, after replying with 311 for seven to the Indian total of 328.
“I would have been happier to have won it the normal way but what is satisfying is the way the boys are getting used to chasing big totals, something which has not been Pakistan’s strong point in recent years,” he said.
Woolmer said he would be looking at ways to curtail Pakistan’s habit of conceding too many runs in one-dayers.
“That is something we have to look at. India could have ran away with the game I thought we came back magnificently to restrict them after Tendulkar’s dismissal,” he added.
The two teams have a four-day break and play the second one-dayer in Rawalpindi on Saturday.—Reuters
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