Promising South African youngster Lhuan-dre Pretorius and former Proteas U19 batter Josh Richards became involved in a heated altercation during the CSA 4-Division Series clash between Titans and the Lions.
The incident took place after Richards took a single on the last ball of the 12th over of the Lions’ innings. After completing the run, the batter turned towards keeper Pretorius, gesturing at him angrily, presumably displeased with the latter’s actions.
Both players got in each other's faces, with Richards pointing his finger at Pretorius, even as the fielders players rallied around their player. As the interaction escalated, the umpire physically intervened to separate the two. Play was held up as both the on-field umpires tried to diffuse the situation, while Richards was pulled away by his skipper and the non-striker Dominic Hendricks.
The commentators stated that the incident was one for the match referees. “Something for the match referee to look at. We don’t mind hard cricket, but this was a little bit more, players getting into each other’s spaces, pushing each other around.” He also reminded that the two had been teammates in club cricket. “I think they might have been teammates in club cricket!”
It was not the end of their conflict. During the next over, Donovan Ferreira was forced to wait as Richards and Pretorius exchanged words again. The bowler was not pleased, complaining to the umpire about the hold-up, before play resumed.
Richards was eventually dismissed for 54 off 54 deliveries on the third day of the clash, being held at Centurion. Batting first, Titans posted 368 on the board, with Pretorius scoring 21. The Lions responded with 386, taking a slender first-innings lead.
The 26-year-old Richards has played 54 first-class games, scoring 3,532 runs at 42.55, while Pretorius, touted as the next big star from South Africa, has made 931 runs in red-ball cricket in 11 games. He made his international debut earlier this year and made a hundred on debut against Zimbabwe.
Watch the incident here:
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