UAE bowler’s massive no-ball in Abu Dhabi T10 League sparks amusement

UAE Bowler Hazrat Bilal’s Front-Foot No-Ball Stirs Laughter and Debate in Abu Dhabi T10 League

United Arab Emirates bowler Hazrat Bilal sparked laughter and online debate with a front-foot no-ball during Champ Army’s match against New York Strikers in the Abu Dhabi T10 League on Friday.

Bilal, who plays for Champ Army, jumped over a foot while attempting a short delivery, provoking reactions from teammates, fans and Australian cricketer David Warner.

Bilal’s no-ball came in the fourth over, which dismissed Zeeshan Abid. He smashed the subsequent free-hit for a six in Donovan Ferreira’s extra cover over. On the field, teammates including Faf du Plessis were seen laughing at the replay, while Reece Tapley laughed off the sidelines. Warner questioned if the free-hit was given and emphasized the incident on social media.

The incident occurs as the Abu Dhabi T10 League is under increased investigation after being banned for corruption by the ICC earlier this year. In the 2021 season, team owners Parag Sanghavi and Krishan Kumar Chowdhury, as well as former Pune Devils batting coach Azhar Zaidi, were sanctioned for fraudulent practices.
Zaidi was banned for five years for instigating participants to corruption, while Sanghavi and Chowdhury were banned for two years each.

In the match, Champ Army cruised to victory by restricting New York Strikers to 99-7 after chasing 136. Earlier, Faf du Plessis smashed 75 runs off 32 balls.