Miraz showed incredible sportsmanship, says Mithun

Khulna Tigers captain Mehidy Hasan Miraz has earned widespread praise for a remarkable display of sportsmanship during their match against Chattogram Kings.

After appealing for a "timed out" dismissal against Tom O'Connell, who took too long to come to the crease, Miraz withdrew the appeal and allowed O'Connell to bat.

Chattogram captain Mohammad Mithun lauded Miraz's gesture, calling it an example of "great character."

The incident occurred during the seventh over of Chattogram's innings. Pakistani all-rounder Mohammad Nawaz had just dismissed Haider Ali on the first ball, bringing O'Connell to the crease.

However, O'Connell took longer than the allowed two minutes to get ready to face his first delivery. As he walked onto the field, Khulna players, including Miraz, discussed the situation with the on-field umpire.

By the time O'Connell stepped onto the field, the two-minute window had already passed. While he was conversing with teammate Shamim Hossain, the umpire informed him of the delay and declared him "timed out." O'Connell began walking back to the dugout when Miraz raised his hand, signalled for him to return, and granted him the chance to bat.

Praising Miraz's decision, Mithun said, "Miraz showed incredible sportsmanship and great character. He deserves full credit for this decision. In T20 cricket, such incidents should ideally not happen. A batsman should always be prepared, but perhaps O'Connell wasn't expecting the wicket to fall so quickly. That's why he was taking his time to get ready."

Mithun added that Miraz could have easily stuck to the original decision, which would have been within the rules, leaving O'Connell no choice but to return to the pavilion. Instead, Miraz opted for fairness over strict adherence to the rulebook.

"It's a rule that if a batsman doesn't come in time, the fielding side has every right to appeal. But when O'Connell returned, it was Miraz's decision to let him bat. That deserves a lot of praise," Mithun said.