England’s on-going squabble with in-game technology is back in the limelight on the opening day of the third Ashes Test, courtesy of a technological failure in the Snickometer system, which deprived England of a vital wicket, forcing the ICC to step in. The glitch has once again brought to the fore concerns regarding the accuracy of audio-detection technology in Edge Calls in critical Tests.
The drama began with Alex Carey on 72, as he tried to reach a delivery by Josh Tongue pitched outside the off stump. England was certain it had made contact with the bat, but third umpire Ahsan Raza gave it not out. England was quick to review it, but third umpire Chris Gaffaney confirmed it to be a not-out decision. Although there was a sound spike in the Real-Time Snickometer, it seemed to occur a number of frames before it made any contact with the bat.
Clarity came quickly as BBG Sports, the company tasked with the implementation of the Snicko technology, admitted the fault. England was left rueing the day as Carey went on to score a century, with the batsman finishing with 106 as Australia was on 326-8 at the close. England was further frustrated by the knowledge that Carey had admitted he had edged the ball, with the batsman acknowledging he had been “given a bit of luck”.
This increased England’s strength in their grievance, with head coach Brendon McCullum and England team manager Wayne Bentley lodging a formal protest with match referee Jeff Crowe over the issue. Subsequent to the protest and in accordance with ICC playing conditions, the match referee restored a review for England over the confirmed technology failure.
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David Saker, the bowling coach of the English cricket team, also expressed his displeasure with the system and felt that there had been concerns about the accuracy of this system right through the series. With the ICC announcing plans for another investigation and the ECB wanting changes in the system, the incident involving Carey reminds us of the fragility of faith in such technology even at the top level of the sport.
