Litton Das calls Mohammad Rizwan 'unprofessional' over handshake snub

Bangladesh wicketkeeper-batter Litton Das has accused Pakistan batter Mohammad Rizwan of refusing a handshake during the Test series, calling his conduct ‘unprofessional’. 

Tensions flared between Das and Rizwan during the recently concluded two-match Test series. The pair were involved in a heated argument during the second Test in Sylhet.

The incident occurred in the 72nd of Pakistan’s innings, when Rizwan complained about someone near the sightscreen. Litton questioned Rizwan over the delay, which led to an argument before umpire Richard Kettleborough intervened to defuse the situation.

Now, Das has broken the silence on the matter, revealing that Rizwan snubbed the customary handshake during both Test matches.

“I didn’t like one thing. Whatever happens on the field, once the game is over, you shake hands with everyone. After we won the first Test, Rizwan didn’t come shake our hands. That’s just bad, no matter who you are or how big a player you are. Win or lose, it’s about respect,” he said during an event with a Bangladesh news outlet.

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Das noted that while Rizwan may have had an issue with him, he showed disrespect to the entire Bangladesh team by refusing to shake hands.

“He might have an issue with me, but the whole Bangladesh team didn’t do anything to him. What should we expect from him next time? He didn’t show respect to our team,” he added, recalling the second Test.

The 31-year-old also described Rizwan and Babar Azam as the pillars of Pakistan’s batting lineup and revealed that Bangladesh had specifically targeted the former.

“I knew only Babar and Rizwan could trouble us. Rizwan’s numbers against us are strong, and that stuck with me. Litton said.

“He’s a big deal in Pakistan, but something happened that I didn’t like. Ever since, I had a question mark about him. Plus, everyone knows Rizwan takes his time between balls. I was keeping wickets in that heat, and it was tough. So I decided to do something about it,” he concluded.

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