While Tabraiz Shamsi can be an absolute delight to watch when he celebrates a dismissal, not many would like the sight of him when the umpire does not give the decision in his favour.
The Chinaman from South Africa had grabbed the eyeballs in the ninth edition of the Indian Premier League with his trademark ‘bus driver’ celebration dance. He took the celebration to another level with yet another bizarre yet hilarious act in the ongoing Caribbean Premier League when, after dismissing Glenn Phillips, he took off his shoe and used it as if it was a phone.
However, the fun-loving Shamsi can turn on the drama to one notch higher when he is not deprived of an opportunity to celebrate a wicket. Well, something similar was witnessed in the recently-concluded CPL final between St Kitts and Nevis Patriots and Trinbago Knight Riders.
With the Knight Riders reeling at 85 for six in pursuit of 136, Shamsi thought he had his team firmly in the driver’s seat when his straighter delivery hit Javon Searles on the pads. It looked close and as expected Shamsi appealed for the wicket.
However, the umpire gave the decision in the batsman’s favour, much to Shamsi’s frustration who staged a bizarre protest after that. Replays showed that the ball pitched on the middle, but the angle was drifting down the leg side.
Here is a clip showing Shamsi’s protest:
Shamsi protest #CPLfinal #SKPvTKR #Biggestpartyinsport pic.twitter.com/GMnyqZtSEi
— CPL T20 (@CPL) September 10, 2017
Shamsi, meanwhile, had the last laugh, as he dismissed Searles in the next over. However, it was not enough to fire the Patriots to the CPL title, as the Knight Riders dramatically won the game to seal their second CPL title.
With 22 runs needed off the last two overs, Ben Hilfenhaus bowled a disastrous penultimate over, bowling two wides, getting hit for a six off a no ball in addition to conceding two fours, as he gave away all the 22 runs.