Image copyright Télévision Tunisienne 1 Image caption When goalkeeper Mouez Hassen collapsed at sundown, his teammates feasted on dates 
 
 Tunisia's World Cup football team has apparently found an ingenious way to fight fatigue as they fast for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. 
 
 In friendly matches against Portugal then Turkey, goalkeeper Mouez Hassen appeared to feign injury at sundown, when the fast comes to an end. 
 
 As he lay on the pitch receiving medical treatment, his teammates rushed to the sidelines to drink water and snack on dates. 
 
 And it produced immediate results. 
 
 Down 2-1 to European champions Portugal, Tunisia rebounded six minutes after Hassen's injury break by scoring an equaliser and ended the match 2-2. 
 
 Days later against Turkey, Hassen stopped play by lying on his back. 
 
 Again, his teammates ate dates and drank water provided to them by waiting coaching staff. That match also ended 2-2. 
 
 Image copyright Télévision Tunisienne 1 Image caption Defender Ali Maaloul (L) is seen here snacking on dates... 
 
 Image copyright Télévision Tunisienne 1 Image caption He then takes a gulp from a bottle of water handed to him by staff 
 
 Footage of that incident has been shared by a Tunisian football fan account. The story has entertained many in the country. 
 
 Pundits in Tunisia were quick to note the timing of the goalkeeper's injuries in the second half of both matches - in the 58th and 47th minutes of play respectively. 
 
 This coincided with the time of sunset, which is when Iftar - the breaking of the fast usually with dates and water - begins for Muslims observing Ramadan. 
 
 The Tunisian football federation has yet to comment on the timing of the two injury breaks. 
 
 But goalkeeper Hassen tweeted: "I was hurt, bruv" along with laughing emojis, in response to fellow footballer Chaker Alhadhur's jokey comment: "It's all right now, we know you were pretending." 
 
 All eyes will be on Tunisia's goalkeeper when the team plays its next friendly against Spain on 9 June. 
 
 The North Africans' first World Cup match takes place against England on 18 June, by which point Ramadan will be over. 
 
 Image copyright AFP Image caption Tunisia are one of five African teams at the World Cup 
 
 What is Ramadan? 
 
 During Ramadan, Muslims are required to abstain from food, liquids and intimacy between sunrise and sunset. 
 
 The aim is to increase spirituality and religious observance through longer prayers and self-control, as Ramadan is seen as an opportunity to replenish one's spirituality. 
 
 The intention to fast must be made every day before dawn. The intention or "niyyah" may be made during the night before going to sleep or it can also be made at the time of "suhoor" or pre-dawn meal. 
 
 It is acceptable not to fast during Ramadan if you are pregnant, have a physical or mental illness, are elderly, experiencing severe thirst or hunger, travelling, or if your life is threatened should you not break the fast. 
 
 Read more: ||||| Tunisian footballers have devised a clever plan of breaking their Ramadan fasts during recent World Cup friendlies. 
 
 In both of their games this week, Tunisian goalkeeper Mouez Hassen went down early in the second half complaining of an "injury" as medical staff rushed onto the pitch. 
 
 During their first match against Portugal and while 2-1 down, Hassen appeared to injure himself in the 58th minute, a move which allowed his teammates to run over to the sidelines and break their fast with a meal referred to as the Iftar. 
 
 After drinking some water and eating a few dates, the North African nation bagged an equaliser six minutes later and went on to hold the European champions for the next 30 minutes to a 2-2 draw. 
 
 And in the 49th minute of a game against Turkey on Saturday, Hassen lay flat on his back while several Tunisian players ran over to the touchlines to grab some food - their first source of nourishment in hours. 
 
 The Eagles of Carthage would also draw that game 2-2. 
 
 Fun fact: 
 
 Tunisian National team has played the last two friendlies while fasting. So, whenever the time comes to break Fast. The players have an agreement that the GK would go down so they can get a moment to drink some water and get something to eat 😂😂#Ramadan #tunisia pic.twitter.com/4Rgz380ukW — Souhail Khmira (@SKhmira) June 2, 2018 
 
 Hundreds of millions of Muslims from around the world fast every day during the Muslim month of Ramadan. 
 
 It is a month of self-discipline where Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, smoking and having sex from sunrise to sunset. 
 
 Tunisia, however, won't have to carry the ploy into the World Cup as the holy month ends before their first game against England on June 18. 
 
 Unbeaten during their qualifying campaign, Tunisia are making their return to the World Cup for the first time in 12 years.
– The goalie for Tunisia's World Cup soccer team has fallen to the turf claiming to be injured in each of the last two games, almost precisely at sunset each time. Bizarre coincidence? Possibly. Goalie Mouez Hassen, however, has slyly acknowledged that something else is going on—and it involves allowing his hungry teammates to grab some snacks. The BBC explains: Members of the team are fasting for Ramadan, but the fast is broken at sunset with a modest meal known as Iftar, usually dates and water. Each time Hassen went down with his "injury," his teammates rushed to the sideline to feast on dates and water during the medical delay. It seems to have helped: In one game, Tunisia trailed Portugal 2-1 before the delay, but tied the game six minutes after the break. The match ended in a draw. The second match also ended in a draw, though apparently without the help of a date-fueled goal. The not-so-subtle scheme is making the rounds of Tunisian social media, and Hassen himself has joined in. "I was hurt, bruv," he tweeted, per the BBC's translation—but he added three laughing emojis. Both of the matches were "friendlies," or exhibition games. Tunisia's first official World Cup match won't be played until June 18 against England, and Ramadan will be over by then, notes al-Jazeera.