Pakistan and Bangladesh players engage in sledging as Sylhet Test contest grows tighter

Bangladesh wicketkeeper Litton Das had a verbal altercation on the fourth day of the Sylhet Test, which coach Shaun Tait later termed sledging. The argument began when Mohammad Rizwan pulled away from facing the delivery while pointing towards the sightscreen. Litton then questioned why he was wasting time, which quickly heated things up.

Rizwan-Litton exchange sparks heated scenes

The Pakistan batter walked towards on-field umpire Richard Kettleborough, who was attempting to calm the situation down, but that only ended up involving the remaining Bangladesh fielders. Most of them were sledging Rizwan for his “overacting”, referring to the incident during the 2023 ODI World Cup where the batter battled cramps multiple times while guiding Pakistan to victory.

Bangladesh fast-bowling coach Shaun Tait, speaking about the incident, admitted he enjoyed such confrontations within limits.

“I don't know what was said but I enjoy it,” Tait said. “I mean, I'm Australian. That probably says it all. I love it. I think there's got to be some argy-bargy. Not all the time.

“You don't want to cross the line, but you got to have a bit of aggression. I mean, it's a Test match between Pakistan and Bangladesh. I think the fans want to see some passion in the game. Guys in a contest trying to get each other out.”

Previous on-field exchanges added to tension

This was hardly the only such incident in the Test. Just the previous day, Pakistan captain Shan Masood and Bangladesh’s Mushfiqur Rahim had an argument, followed by bickering between Taijul Islam and Saud Shakeel.

“They had also been fielding for a long time, so they probably could not control their temperament,” Taijul had said after the close of play on the third day. “Mushfiq bhai did not say anything; he was just talking to the umpire normally. But whatever he [Shan] understood or did not understand, he reacted. When I was walking back to the crease, Saud told me to return to the crease and bat. I mean, that's none of his business.”

Rizwan, along with Salman Ali Agha, had stitched a 130+ runs partnership to revive some of Pakistan's chances. While Bangladesh still have an upper hand, the unexpected partnership helped Pakistan survive for another day.

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