'The umpire should have checked more angles. If there is no conclusive evidence, then the benefit of the doubt should go to the batter.'
Hardik Pandya zoomed past seasoned spinner Yuzvendra Chahal to become the second-highest wicket-taker for India in T20Is during the Asia Cup Super 4s clash against Pakistan in Dubai on Sunday.
Pandya, who opened the bowling after India opted to field, finished with figures of 1-29 in three overs to take his T20I tally to 97.
The 31-year-old all-rounder reached the milestone in 118 matches at 26.63, and is just three scalps away from becoming the second Indian to take 100 T20I wickets after Arshdeep Singh, who achieved the feat in India's previous match against Oman.
Hardik has claimed 15 wickets in eight innings against Pakistan, the most by a bowler against the arch-rivals in T20Is.
He has never gone wicketless against Pakistan in the eight innings in white-ball cricket.
Hardik could have surpassed Chahal in the opening over. Pakistan's young opener Sahibzada Farhan miscued a shot and it went straight to Abhishek Sharma at third man but he misjudged the ball's trajectory and ended up spilling the opportunity.
Eventually, Hardik wrote his name into the wickets column with an away going off-cutter that induced a thick edge off Fakhar Zaman. Wicketkeeper Sanju Samson took a stunning catch diving forward but Fakhar hung around while the legality of the catch was being checked.
A zoomer was employed, and after an extended process, the third umpire adjudged that Samson's fingers were underneath the ball, and the catch was legal.
Fakhar shook his head in disbelief while returning to the dugout after scoring 15 off 9 balls. He even had a brief conversation with head coach Mike Hesson, who waved his hand while trying to express his displeasure at the third umpire's decision.
Seemingly, the ball had grassed before going into Samson's gloves. Although there was no conclusive evidence of it being a clean catch, the third umpire ruled in favor of the bowling side.
“The umpire should have checked more angles. If there is no conclusive evidence, then the benefit of the doubt should go to the batter,” said Pakistan's legendary Wasim Akram while commentating on the decision.
After his two-over spell in the Powerplay, Hardik was reintroduced into the attack to bowl the final over. He conceded 14 runs as Pakistan ended on 171 for 5, their highest T20 total against India while batting first.
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