When medical teams of both England and Australia rushed into the ground to check on Steve Smith after the latter had been floored by a Jofra Archer bouncer, twitter melted with tribute and praised both teams for uplifting and maintaining the spirit of cricket despite the hostility and historical rivalry between them. A similar thing occurred during first-ever India vs Bangladesh day-night Test at the Eden Gardens on November 22, 2019 (Friday) when team India physio Nitin Patel rushed to the ground to attend to Bangladeshi batsman Nayeem Hasan after the latter was hit on the head by a Mohammed Shami bouncer. Indian skipper Virat Kohli was also seeing gesturing towards the dressing room calling for the physio after checking on Nayeem. India Vs Bangladesh, Live Cricket Score 2nd Test Match.

With Shami running wild and high on pace, Bangladeshi batsmen failed to read his line and length and fell prey to his pace. Liton Das was the first batsman injured after being hit on the hamlet and had to force retire hurt post the lunch break. Liton, who was struck on the hamlet in the 21st over, initially continued after being hit on the head but retired hurt at lunch on Day 1 with Mehidy Hasan replacing him in the playing XI. IND vs BAN Day-Night Test 2019: Pacers Annihilate Bangladesh for 106, Kohli-Pujara Partnership Gives India 68-Run Lead at Stumps.

Virat Kohli Askes Team India Physio To Check On Nayeem Hasan

 

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Bangladesh player in trouble? No worries - #TeamIndia physio to the rescue #SpiritOfCricket #PinkBallTest

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Shami then returned two balls later – lunch was called after 21.4 overs following Liton Das’ retired hurt decision – and hit Nayeem on the head with his very first delivery. Nayeem, 18, was hit on the right side of the hamlet and despite the young batsman showing the thumbs-up sign to suggest all was fine, the Indian players swarmed around him. Kohli rushed to the young cricketer after checking on him immediately called for the team India physio to come out and check the Bangladeshi batsman.

Spirit of Cricket!!

Humanity Above Sports Rivalry

Sports is the Winner

Spirit of Cricket

“In the end, it's all about #SpiritOfCricket. #TeamIndia physio, Mr Nitin Patel attends to Nayeem (Hasan) after he gets hit on the helmet,” said BCCI in a video posted on its official social media channels. The heart-warming gesture also earned applauses online with fans praising the Indian camp for their humanitarian concerns despite the on-field rivalry.

Nayeem was eventually replaced by spinner Taijul Islam in the Bangladesh playing XI under the concussion substitute rule introduced by ICC in August earlier this year. This also became the first time two concussion substitutes appeared for a single team in the same Test match. Taijul was also the fifth player to appear as a concussion substitute in a Test match with Marnus Labuschagne being the first player when he replaced Australian teammate Steve Smith during the second Ashes 2019 Test match at Lord’s.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 23, 2019 03:36 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).