Former India captain Anil Kumble has hailed Mahendra Singh Dhoni for his decision to withdraw the run-out appeal against England's Ian Bell and said he was proud of the team for playing the game in the right spirit.
"I am really proud of the team for playing the game in the right spirit. Although they took 20 minutes to take the decision," Kumble said.
Bell was controversially given run-out when he left the crease after completing a run, assuming that the ball was dead and tea had been called.
The incident happened when Bell, after completing the third run off a shot by Eoin Morgan on the final ball before the tea break walked off the crease, assuming that the ball had crossed the boundary.
But Praveen Kumar made a diving effort at boundary and threw the ball at Abhinav Mukund who clipped the bails at the striker's end.
The Indians appealed and the batsman was given out after replays showed that the ball had not crossed the boundary.
But, in a magnanimous gesture, India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni withdrew his appeal against Bell at the tea break, allowing him to bat again.
"Mahendra Singh Dhoni had around 20 minutes to decide on the decision that was taken," Kumble was quoted as saying to CNN-IBN.
"If you notice during the break in the studio, Alan Wilkins confirmed that the umpires had asked Dhoni whether he would take back the decision and Dhoni had said no.
"When he went back during tea, Andy Flower and Andrew Strauss walked up to the Indian coach requesting them to take back the decision and which they did after consulting the team which in hindsight I think was a very good decision," the veteran revealed.
"I think at the end of it, you are playing a sport and you have to at some point take a call on whether the game is bigger than an individual and I think that is what Dhoni did today," he added.
