Furious Carse clashes with Weatherald, Head and umpire after another Snicko drama

2 months ago 17

England bowler Brydon Carse could face scrutiny from match referee Jeff Crowe for making contact with both Travis Head and umpire Ahsan Raza at the SCG on Thursday as he protested another controversial decision involving Snicko.

Carse was fuming that Jake Weatherald was not given out caught behind during Australia’s successful chase of 160 for victory on day five of the fifth Ashes Test.

Raza did not raise his finger, despite a strong appeal from England, and the third umpire did not overturn his decision - even though there was a feint spike on Snicko as the ball passed Weatherald’s bat, which the Barmy Army celebrated each time it was shown on the big screen.

But the cheers of the touring English fans turned to boos when the review was rejected. An infuriated Carse took his complaints straight to Raza, and appeared to put his arm on the umpire’s shoulder before England captain Ben Stokes stepped in and moved him on.

“There’s a spike on the technology we use,” Stokes told Raza.

Carse then exchanged words with Weatherald after delivering the final ball of his over - another play and miss - and bumped into Head on his way back to his mark.

Stokes pushes away Carse before having words with the on-field umpire.

Adam Gilchrist said Carse had a “head of steam” and credited Stokes for intervening when he did.

“I think the best thing Ben Stokes did there was quickly act and get his fast bowler away from the umpire,” he said in commentary on Fox Cricket.

“I can understand why England feel aggrieved.”

Michael Vaughn said he couldn’t understand why Weatherald remained at the crease.

Brydon Carse and Jake Weatherald exchange words.

“I don’t get that,” he said on Fox. “Finally, the Ashes have come to life. I feel for England, that was out.” Added Mark Waugh: “They’re firing up.”

Australian and English players have expressed dismay with Snicko during the series, particularly during the third Test in Adelaide where the technology’s faults and the lack of regulatory consistency across world cricket became a talking point.

After day one at Adelaide Oval, the company responsible for Snicko took “full responsibility” for a human error, which meant that Alex Carey, who would go on to score a century, was not given out on 72 when he nicked a ball behind.

Thursday was not the first time that the bad blood between the two sides in Sydney was evident.

On day two, Stokes twice told Marnus Labuschagne to “shut the f--- up” and then put his arm around the back of his neck in an argument that his former teammate Stuart Broad said had formed part of England’s strategy to get him out.

“I chatted to Stokesy this morning, I’m not breaking any trust by saying this. Marnus was saying ‘oh that’s going down leg’, ‘or ‘that’s four runs’,” Broad explained on Channel Seven.

“He [Stokes] was saying, ‘we’ve got two umpires out here, we don’t need three.’

“So it was all quite polite, but what happens is, it got Labuschagne out of his bubble, and that’s a plan of England: get him out of routines, and the next ball Ben Stokes bowls, he drives at one that’s a bit wide, moves away, and he’s out.”

Stokes was not punished for his altercation with Labuschagne.

More to come ...