Team India was rocked by another Decision Review System (DRS) controversy during the second Test against the Australian national cricket team. Third umpire Richard Kettleborough rued the decision in favor of the Australian team, despite evidence suggesting that the ball may have hit the pad first.
Australia commenced the second day’s play at 86/1 at the Adelaide Oval on Saturday, December 7. However, they lost the wicket of Nathan McSweeney, who added just one run to his overnight score. They ended the first session on Day 2 with a total of 191/4 in 59 overs, taking a crucial 11-run lead.
Watch: India Hit by Another DRS Controversy
The incident took place on the third ball of the 58th over in Australia’s first innings. Ravichandran Ashwin forced skipper Rohit Sharma to take DRS for LBW against Mitchell Marsh. The on-field umpire referred the decision to the third umpire.
The third umpire failed to follow proper protocol and gave Marsh not out despite evidence that the ball may have hit the pad first. The replays showed that the ball hit the bat first, leaving Indian cricketers in shock. The decision was ultimately ruled not out, and India lost their second review of the innings.
The official decided there was “no conclusive evidence” to overturn the on-field not-out decision. The Hawk-Eye tracking system showed that the ball would have hit the stumps, showing two reds.
You can watch the clip of the incident below:
Bat or pad first? Hard to say – sticking with the umpire’s call #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/UqsoPvEruJ
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) December 7, 2024
No conclusive evidence says the TV umpire. Virat and Ashwin unhappy. In Perth, KL Rahul was given out without any conclusive evidence. pic.twitter.com/9BDAtz3OTh
— Subhayan Chakraborty (@CricSubhayan) December 7, 2024
Ravichandran Ashwin More Likely to Take Wickets – Ryan Ten Doeschate
Team India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate revealed the reason behind Ravichandran Ashwin’s inclusion over Washington Sundar. The Dutchman stated that Ashwin is more likely to get wickets in these conditions.
“Yeah, Washy hasn’t put a foot wrong since he’s come into the fold, halfway through that New Zealand series… I guess the thinking going into the last Test, we wanted to strengthen the batting,” Ryan ten Doeschate said at the post-day press conference.
“And given what we saw of Nitish in the first Test, we kind of thought we’d go with what we perceived to be the guys bowling the best spin at the moment. And we feel Ash is more likely to get wickets in these conditions.”
“When you get the confidence of Nitish batting at 7, it doesn’t really matter with Ash batting at 8. And that was the thinking. Not much to choose between them. And we just thought that Ash would be slightly more effective on this wicket,” he added.
Also read: Watch: Virat Kohli shows Nathan McSweeney his place with aggressive send off