Mitchell Starc calls for Snicko to be 'SACKED' and brands it the 'worst technology there is' as another controversial incident rocks the third Ashes Test
The second day of the third Ashes Test in Adelaide was marred by more controversy over the DRS technology, with Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc claiming ‘Snicko needs to be sacked’, and former captain Ricky Ponting complaining: ‘Everyone’s confused.’
The day had begun with the news that England had been handed back the review they lost on the first evening, when an error by the operators of the Real-Time Snicko technology used in Tests in Australia saved Alex Carey.
Carey, who had 72 at the time but went on to make 106, admitted he had got away with edging Josh Tongue through to Jamie Smith at a pivotal moment of the opening day, prompting England’s head coach Brendon McCullum and tour manager Wayne Bentley to speak to ICC match referee Jeff Crowe, ahead of more formal discussions with the game’s governing body.
But the second afternoon in Adelaide descended into farce, as Australia joined England in losing faith in the technology after TV umpire Chris Gaffaney ruled that a bouncer from Pat Cummins had hit the helmet of Jamie Smith but missed his glove en route to Usmah Khawaja in the slips.
The catch seemed to have been taken on the half-volley in any case, but Starc’s comments were picked up on the stump mic while the players awaited Gaffaney’s decision. ‘Snicko needs to be sacked,’ he said.
Aussie pace bowler Mitchell Starc (pictured) was overheard on the stump mic calling for Snicko to be ‘sacked’, while adding that it is ‘the worst technology there is’
The Starc comment came after umpires called for off-field help to decide whether Englishman Jamie Smith had been caught by Australia's Usman Khawaja
‘That’s the worst technology there is. They make a mistake the other day and they make another mistake today.’
Travis Head, meanwhile, said: ‘The world is going mad! What is going on!?’
Smith survived that appeal, only to be given out soon after, with the on-field umpires Ahsan Raza and Nitin Menon – by now apparently as confused as the players – sending another contentious decision upstairs to Gaffaney.
Snicko showed a tremor as the ball passed close to the toe-end of Smith’s bat, but a missing frame in the video footage meant that could not be backed up by the naked eye.
In the commentary box, Ponting said: ‘Well, everyone’s confused, that’s the thing.
The players are confused, the umpires are confused on-field, the third umpire is very confused, because he’s not trusting what he’s seeing from the technology.
‘The other confusing part of that is the on-field umpire actually didn’t make any decision.
Facing a Pat Cummins bouncer, Smith attempted a hook shot but missed hitting the ball, which travelled to Khawaja at first slip
Following a review, the umpires had determined the ball had struck Smith's (pictured) helmet, not his glove
Aussie Captain Cummins (right) remonstrated with the umpires over the lack of consistency from the review system
Snicko then struck again after Smith was dismissed following a review, with the Snickometer appearing to spike before the ball reached Smith's bat
'He didn’t give it not out, he didn’t give it out. He just threw it straight upstairs without making a decision to see if it was a fair catch.’
The obvious solution is for Cricket Australia to pay for better technology, as the ECB have done for Tests in England, which use the superior Ultra-Edge.
In the meantime, former Test umpire Simon Taufel called for the return of the ‘soft signal’, whereby the on-field officials relay their gut instinct to their TV colleague, before a formal decision is reached.
Taufel told Channel 7: ‘You go upstairs and say, “Look, does the technology show me something that I haven’t seen? Is there an element that I’ve got it wrong? If I’ve got it conclusively wrong, change it and move on.”’
