Pakistan advanced to the U19 World Cup semi-finals, but the dismissal of their star batter was the major talking point
'Mankad' controversy returns to Under-19 World Cup
Pakistan eased to victory in their Under-19 World Cup quarter-final clash against Afghanistan in Benoni, but star batter Mohammad Huraira's innings came to a controversial end when he was 'Mankaded' by Afghanistan bowler Noor Ahmad.
🚨 MANKAD 🚨Noor Ahmed used the Mankad mode of dismissal to see off Pakistan's well-set Muhammad Hurraira for 64!What do you make of it? 👇 #U19CWC | #AFGvPAK | #FutureStars pic.twitter.com/DoNKksj1KN%E2%80%94 Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) January 31, 2020
Huraira struck 64 off 76 balls on Friday as Pakistan comfortably chased down 190 to beat Afghanistan with 53 balls to spare in the knock-out match at the youth tournament.
Dismissing a batsman by 'Mankading' - when a bowler runs out a batter who is backing up too far - is considered by some to be against the spirit of the game, especially if a prior warning has not been given.
Can we sort out (remove) this law please @ICC #MCC?? https://t.co/dec60oogif%E2%80%94 James Anderson (@jimmy9) January 31, 2020
But, just as in the 2016 Under-19 World Cup when the West Indies took a wicket in that manner, the spotlight fell on the youth tournament once again.
Afghan captain Farhan Zakhil admitted after his side's eventual six-wicket defeat that they may not have resorted to the tactic if they had been in a better position.
"At that time, we realised let's do something different to build pressure on Pakistan," Zakhil told ESPN. "To be honest, it was not in the spirit of the game."
But Huraira conceded that he was to blame for leaving his crease.
"I should've been in the crease, and I'll learn from the mistake. I'll ensure it isn't repeated again."
"This is the law. It is in the law."@irbishi gives his take on Mankad as a mode of dismissal. #U19CWC | #FutureStars pic.twitter.com/io4eJ2WEXA%E2%80%94 Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) January 31, 2020
Pakistan will now look to treat the latest episode in their long cricket rivalry with neighbours India as "a normal game", Huraira said ahead of their semi-final clash.
"The India-Pakistan rivalry has always been there," said Huraira.
"There will be a bit more pressure, but we'll get used to it. Myself, should I play, I'll try and play it like a normal game, and we look forward to it."
India are the defending champions and have captured the Under-19 title on four occasions, while Pakistan were back-to-back champions in 2004 and 2006.
They beat India in the 2006 final in Colombo where they bowled out their rivals for just 71 pursuing a modest target of 109.
India made the semi-finals with a 74-run win over Australia on Tuesday, maintaining their perfect record in the tournament having won all of their three group games.
The second semi-final features Bangladesh against New Zealand, also in Potchefstroom, on Thursday.