Day three in Rawalpindi brought an unexpected twist, with a moment right at the very end drawing significant attention. On the final delivery of the day, South Africa had been in control, and Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan played a gentle drive off Keshav Maharaj towards cover. With no immediate run attempted, Rizwan casually turned and, in a smooth, almost unconscious motion, tapped the base stump with his bat, causing the bails to fall.
South Africa’s wicketkeeper, Kyle Verreynne, immediately appealed for a hit wicket, convinced that Rizwan had broken his own stumps. However, the ball was technically still in play—the fielder had not yet returned it to the keeper, and the umpires hadn’t officially called stumps for the day. Umpire Sharfuddoula, at the bowler’s end, promptly dismissed the appeal with a slight smile, a decision supported by square-leg umpire Chris Brown. Reports suggested that the South African players were not explicitly told the reason for the rejection at that moment.
While it might seem highly unusual for a batter to dislodge the bails with their bat and still be given ‘not out,’ the Laws of Cricket actually backed Rizwan’s actions. Law 35.1 on ‘Hit Wicket’ clarifies that a batter can only be given out in this manner if it happens during the bowler’s delivery stride, while attempting a shot or immediately taking a run afterward, or while making a second or subsequent stroke to protect their wicket. Rizwan’s action did not fall under any of these specific conditions.
The South African team seemed to take the incident in stride. All-rounder Senuran Muthusamy later mentioned he was too far from the play to witness the exact sequence of events, indicating the team wasn’t particularly bothered by the ruling. As stumps were called, Pakistan maintained a narrow 23-run lead with six wickets in hand, keeping South Africa’s hopes of leveling the series very much alive.
Image Caption: Pakistan’s Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan walk off the field at the end of Day 3 of the second Test cricket match between Pakistan and South Africa.