A Decision Review System (DRS) howler in the ongoing Test series Down Under sparked a fresh controversy following the dismissal of Hanuma Vihari on the second day of the Sydney Test. While Vihari was eyeing the 2nd half-century of his Test career, he was given out caught by Marnus Labuschagne at short leg off Nathan Lyon's bowling.
The incident happened during the 102nd over when Vihari attempted a lap sweep but failed to get on top of the bounce. The ball hit his left bicep, went up in the air and Labuschagne took an easy catch. The Aussies appealed in unison and umpire Ian Gould raised his finger.
Within no time Vihari asked for the review but couldn’t save himself. The umpires gave him out but the replay visuals stirred a new controversy.
Here’s the video:
There were two deflections seen on the SNICKO. When the first one appeared, the ball was away from the bat.
The second big spike became the base of TV Umpire’s final decision. However, it’s clearly visible — when the second deflection appeared, the ball was above Vihari's willow, forming a shadow on it.
After having a couple of close looks, the decision went in the favour of the hosts and the Indians lost one of their two reviews. That was the only wicket the Aussies could scalp in the morning session. Vihari ended up scoring 42 off 96 and a huge partnership of 101 runs came to an end. India scored 389/5 at lunch.
Meanwhile, the commentators stated that the ball didn’t scratch the bat.
“I think that one is going to be scrutinised a little bit more closely in the next short while. Clearly, it didn’t scratch the edge of the bat, the way I’m seeing it,” said Adam Gilchrist.
“You look at the spike, and you look at where the ball is in conjunction with the bat, and it looks like it’s miles away,” said fellow commentator Brett Lee.