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Cricket Players'So, Ashwin and Deepti don't have heart at right place?': Twitter attacks Irfan Pathan on tweet praising Rohit Sharma
Twitter wasn't too pleased with Irfan Pathan's tweet about Rohit Sharma following the 1st ODI against Sri Lanka.
Team India registered a strong 67-run victory over Sri Lanka in the first ODI of the series in Guwahati. The hosts posted a mammoth score of 373/7 in fifty overs, thanks to Virat Kohli's brilliant 113, as well as key contributions from Rohit Sharma (83) and Shubman Gill (70). In turn, Sri Lanka gave a strong fight before eventually finishing their innings on 306/8; their captain Dasun Shanaka posted a strong unbeaten 108 off just 88 deliveries.
However, an unusual incident took place in the final over of the Sri Lankan innings which came one of the key talking points from the 1st ODI. With Sri Lanka requiring 83 runs off the last three balls in the second innings, India's Mohammed Shami ran into bowl but whipped the bails at the non-striker's end as Shanaka - who was then on 98 - left his crease.
Shami appealed for a run-out as the umpire signalled for a TV review before Rohit stepped in and withdrew the appeal after a chat with the umpire.
"I had no idea Shami did that and then went for an appeal," Rohit said in a post-match interview. "Again, he is batting on 98. The way he batted was brilliant, we've got to give it to him. We cannot get him out like that.
“We wanted to get him out the way we thought we would get him out, but that was not something that we thought of. But again, hats off to him, he played really well.”
Rohit's move drew mixed reactions from social media as the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) had recently moved the mode of dismissal – informally known as ‘Mankad’ – to Run out section in the laws. Former India bowler Irfan Pathan appreciated Rohit's move but received criticism over his tweet supporting the Indian captain.
“Always felt that @ImRo45 has his heart at the right place. #INDvsSL,” Pathan wrote.
The fans were critical of the tweet from Pathan, and asked the former India bowler if Deepti Sharma and Ravichandran Ashwin – who have used the dismissal in the past – “didn't have their heart at the right place.”
The 'Mankad' dismissal, named after former India all-rounder Vinoo Mankad, is legal but has fuelled debate as to whether it breaches the spirit of the game.
Shanaka eventually brought up his century on the penultimate delivery of the innings before wrapping things up with a six to finish with an unbeaten 108.
