In the second Twenty20 International match against Bangladesh, Soumya Sarkar’s overturned caught-behind was a major factor in the result, according to Sri Lankan assistant coach Naveed Nawaz on Wednesday.
The event occurred in the fourth over of the match when Sri Lankan captain Charith Asalanka sent pacer Binura Fernando into the attack and caused an edge as Soumya attempted to pull. The batter was given out caught behind after the ball was taken to Kusal Mendis, but he reviewed right away.
“The on-field umpire had given him out and I am sure the TV umpire got to have conclusive evidence to overturn the on-field umpire’s decision,” Nawaz continued. “It was evident that there was a spike—we saw it on the big screen—and we may need to bring it up with the match referee to find out what truly transpired. We haven’t seen any tape or anything like that. Although there isn’t enough film on our screens to make a statement, I’m confident the TV umpire had sufficient evidence to reverse the ruling.”
After observing the spike on the big screen, Soumya started to head back. However, TV umpire Masudur Rahman determined that the spike appeared one frame too late to constitute an edge off the bat and that there was a space between the bat and the ball at the time of the spike.
The on-field umpire was mobbed by Sri Lankan players who were seeking clarification. Although Soumya was not able to stay at the crease for very long, the event undoubtedly left the visitors mentally behind.
“Well, the first wicket was a major problem and might have given us an advantage. Any wicket is obviously important on a track like this “explained Naveed.
