Sohail Khan Row: Bangladesh U19 Raises Overs and Umpiring Concerns

A controversy has erupted after the Bangladesh Cricket Board sent a letter to the Afghanistan Cricket Board alleging that Afghan Under-19 captain Sohail Khan bowled an extra over in a recent one-day match.

The complaint centres on the claim that Sohail Khan delivered an '11th over' when ODI regulations allow only 10 per bowler.

The disputed match was the third game of the series, played on Wednesday at Al Amerat. Afghanistan scored 237 after batting first, with Subhan Zakhail making 81 and Shah Faisal Rahimi making 80.

Bangladesh's Al Amin Hossain returned figures of six wickets in that innings.

In reply, Bangladesh were dismissed for 194 in 38.2 overs. Sohail Khan finished with two wickets.

Bangladesh Under-19 coach Hannan Sarkar said the team had put its concerns in writing. The captain's match report carried a note on the 11 overs, while the team also highlighted questionable umpiring decisions.

According to Sarkar, the standard report format had no dedicated section for such matters, which is why a supplementary note was added below the list of decisions.

Bangladesh also held a long meeting with match referee Yasir Latifzai. Both the umpiring errors and the extra over were discussed in detail.

The team says its own analyst found that Sohail Khan had already bowled 10 overs. By the time this was noticed, he had started an additional over, and the umpire was informed only after that over concluded.

The video of the over has been shared with the match referee.

The confusion, Bangladesh says, arose when the scorer recorded the 11th over under Shah Faisal Rahimi. Another player had given his cap to the umpire to bowl that over, but the captain changed the plan at the last minute and bowled himself.

Bangladesh insists Sohail Khan delivered the over. The scorer had logged 10 overs for him, mistakenly attributing one over to another player who had not bowled it.

The BCB has also raised concerns about LBW and caught-behind decisions that it considers incorrect.

A board official said the letter was meant to inform the ACB of what took place during the bilateral series, adding that Afghanistan had been advised to be more cautious in future.