Watch: Controversial snicko leads to another error in Ashes, Jamie Smith given out despite lack of evidence

Controversy was yet again on the centre stage in the Ashes on Thursday (Dec 18) as England were on the receiving end of another decision. While ICC had to reinstate one of England’s reviews for technology failure earlier on Thursday, another key decision followed when Jamie Smith was adjudged out despite a clear gap between bat and ball. The decision sparked controversy, when a day earlier Alex Carey was given not out despite him admitting to an edge on the bat in another incident.

Controversy surrounds Adelaide Test

On the first ball of the 46th over, Smith appeared to have edged the ball, which was caught by wicketkeeper Carey. However, the catch was not clean and umpire Nitin Menon took help from third umpire Chris Gaffaney for a check. However, during the check process, there appeared to be a huge gap between the ball and the bat. However, Snicko showed otherwise with fluctuation visible on the Ultraedge.

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This meant the umpire gave Smith out based on the evidence despite a clear gap between bat and ball. England captain Ben Stokes was clearly unhappy with the decision as he wanted clarity on the situation.

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What happened on Day 1?

On Day 1, in a similar incident, Alex Carey was given not out for a caught behind despite the ball and bat being in close proximity. In fact Carey later confirmed that he had likely touched the ball with his bat while playing the ball. It was later confirmed that a human error had caused the error, with the operator turning the wrong mic on during the check, resulting in a spike on Ultraedge.

An apology was later issued by the technology operator while ICC decided to reinstate England’s review, as they lost it due to a manual error.