PAK vs NZ | Twitter reacts to Babar Azam's boldness earning Pakistan crucial wicket of Henry Nicholls amidst severe collapse

01/02/2023

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One umpiring call can change the entire context of a Test match, which is why reviews in red-ball cricket are such potent weapons in the hand of captains. Babar Azam can often be blamed for wasting them all too easily but a sharp independent call from the skipper on Monday helped dismiss Tom Latham.

In a tense and closely-fought third session between Pakistan and New Zealand, the host captain Babr Azam made a bold decision at the Karachi National Stadium on Tuesday that ultimately led to the dismissal of Henry Nicholls. The scalp was the final scalp in a ferocious collapse triggered against the Kiwi batsmen that saw the loss of 5 wickets for 45 runs. A mini-recovery eventually saw the Black Caps end the day at 309/6 with all 90 overs being bowled in a rare occurrence.

The incident occurred in the 79th over of the match, with Henry Nicholls well set having already played 55 balls. Facing crafty spinner Salman Agha Ali, the batsman flashed hard at a ball turning away from off-stump only to catch a thin faint edge. The incident hardly drew a reaction from the Men in Green but attracted the attention of skipper Babar Azam. Split in two given him being the only one yearning for a review, Azam decided to trust his gut and in a last-ditch effort put his hands up to make the signal to the umpire.

To the surprise of many, the snicko confirmed Babar's suspicion, earning a scream of delight from him as he pointed at Salman Agha Ali to prove his point. Twitter was all praise for the boldness of the host skipper who often is under flak for not being wary of wasting reviews.

Golden review

What a review! 😲

The golden arm of 🙌 |
— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB)

Didn't knew

Sarfaraz Ahmed didn't think Henry Nicholls edged it.
— Younus Basheer (@YounusBashir__)

Game of his life

Salman Ali Agha is having the game of his life with ball in hand. Bowling Daryl Mitchell through the gate, and then drawing the thinnest of edges off the bat of Henry Nicholls. Pakistan are in business.
— Behram Qazi 🇵🇰 🇨🇦 (@DeafMango)

Stunning one!

Stunning review by Babar Azam! Henry Nicholls is OUT! 3rd wicket for Salman Ali Agha.
— Zain RajPuT (@Babarazam2917)

Seriously

Sarfaraz Ahmed didn't think Henry Nicholls edged it 🤦‍♂️
— Farid Khan (@_FaridKhan)

Not sure

Not sure Henry Nicholls will be in that first test XI v Eng.
— Sam Smith (@sgowsmith1988)

Babur took it!

Excellent review by Babar Azam!

Sarfraz Ahmed was pretty sure that Henry Nicholls hadn't edged anything but Babar still took a review for the decision to be overturned.

Another average day for Saifi bhai behind the stumps.
— Israr Ahmed Hashmi (@IamIsrarHashmi)

Serious talk needed

There needs to be a serious, serious talk about Henry Nicholls.
— Dylan (@dyylanking)

Coming up!

DRS clock graphic coming up on screen after Henry Nicholls missed the ball by a fair distance and Sarfaraz dropped it anyway >>>
— Xavier Voigt-Hill (@voigthill)

Gone finally!