Azhar Ali trolled on Twitter for scoring duck after accidental handshake with Joe Root

Pakistan had a solid outing on a rain-curtailed day of the first Test match of the England vs Pakistan t+Test series. Winning the toss, Azhar Ali decided to bat first and at the end of the day, he found his side to be in a good position. After the loss of two wickets inside the first 20 overs, Shan Masood and Babar Azam steadied the ship, guiding Pakistan to a respectable 139/2 at the end of the day’s play.

While Babar Azam gave a good account of his batting, Pakistan captain Azhar Ali had a day to forget from start to finish individually. The player leading the Pakistan side during the England vs Pakistan 2020 series was even trolled on Twitter as a result.

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England vs Pakistan 2020: Azhar Ali shakes Joe Root’s hand, forgets new guidelines

The first incident involving Azhar Ali happened even before a ball was bowled. After the Pakistan captain won the toss, Azhar Ali proceeded to shake his counterpart Joe Root’s hand. The cricketer seemed to have completely forgetten about the no contact rule and the COVID-19 guidelines issued by ICC, which prohibit players from shaking each other’s’ hands. The incident was later played up by the broadcasters, with Azhar Ali spotted having a sheepish look on his face as he realised his mistake.

Twitter picked up on the flouting of norms as well, trolling Azhar Ali for the same. Several pictures of the player shaking hands with Joe Root went viral, as users claimed that social distancing seems to have gone for a toss during the England vs Pakistan 2020 series. Ali's gesture was the same as West Indies' Test captain Jason Holder, who also nearly shook Ben Stokes' hand prior to the first Test of the recent series between England and West Indies.

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Azhar Ali was later trolled once again during the match

However, his mistake at the toss with Joe Root wasn’t the only instance when the Pakistan captain was pulled up by netizens on Twitter. Coming into bat after Abid Ali was dismissed by Jofra Archer, the Pakistan captain managed to last just six deliveries as he was dismissed for a duck by Chris Woakes. The batsman was caught LBW by the England pacer and his outing went from bad to worst after he incorrectly reviewed the decision, resulting in Pakistan losing a review as well.

After Azhar Ali’s duck, Twitter users were quick to call out the captain. Many joked how Azhar Ali chose to bat first after winning the toss, but couldn’t score a run himself. Another fan shared a clip of the captain walking back to the pavilion, tweeting that the player missed on his century by just a 100 runs.

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Azhar Ali stats roundup

The Pakistan captain will be hoping to do better when he takes to the crease in the second innings and lead the Pakistan side from the front. The Pakistan captain has a respectable record when it comes to Test match cricket. Azhar Ali has played a total of 78 matches for Pakistan and averages 42.58 in Test cricket. The player has scored 16 hundreds and 31 half-centuries for Pakistan in Test matches.

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Image Courtesy: instagram/therealpcb