Nida Dar’s late withdrawal divides the internet, ‘should’ve been out,’ stated reporters

Pakistan’s ODI game against Australia has sparked a heated debate between the netizens. Pakistan’s veteran, Nida Dar’s late withdrawal over Tahlia McGrath’s delivery on Saturday at North Sydney’s Oval, has netizens questioning the player’s wicket and impromptu withdrawal.

It so happened, that Pakistan was chasing down the score set by Australia and as Nida Dar batted alongside Bismah Maroof, she happened to withdraw very late on McGrath’s delivery, which subsequently hit the stumps and bowled the batter over. Batter seemed to have been skeptical as she didn’t witness the ball clearly, due to which she moved away from the crease, naturally making it seem like a dot delivery.

This compelled umpire Claire Polosak to declare a dead ball and Dar was offered life on field. What seemed unfair is Dar’s withdrawal after McGrath had already released the ball. This outraged the commentators and reporters.

“I was always under the impression that when you were in your stance and tapped your bat down, you were ready to accept the delivery,” former Australian captain Rachael Haynes said. “Nida Dar needs to be a bit careful there.”

Channel 9 reporter Mark Gottlieb tweeted: “This should be out. We talk a lot about over rates in cricket, but bowlers shouldn’t have to wait until a batter is ready before starting to run in. Batters should face up quicker.”

Alex Blackwell, former Australian batter, supported Dar’s decision as she had naturally lost track of the delivery coming her way. “I thought that was fair; she didn’t see the ball,” said Blackwell.

While some believed it was fair for the batter to back out, some stated it was too late for her to back out as she dodged the wicket. Some found it unfair on McGrath’s part who lost her big wicket for the game.

Pakistan wasn’t able to secure the game as they fell short of 101 runs.