In a significant incident during the third Ashes Test at the Adelaide Oval, a controversial reprieve for Australian wicketkeeper Alex Carey has drawn attention. The core issue revolves around an operator error tied to the Snickometer technology—commonly known as Snicko—used to detect sound events during cricket matches. Alex Carey admitted during the match that he edged a delivery from England fast bowler Josh Tongue, which was caught by wicketkeeper Jamie Smith, while he was on 72 runs.
Following this controversial catch, Carey proceeded to score a total of 106 runs, contributing to Australia’s total score of 326-8. The question of whether or not he should have been given out was exacerbated when BBG Sports, the company responsible for the Snicko technology, acknowledged their fault in the matter. They pointed out that the Snicko operator had incorrectly chosen the stump microphone for audio processing during the incident. “Given that Alex Carey admitted he hit the ball in question, the only conclusion that can be drawn from this is that the Snicko operator must have selected the incorrect stump mic,” BBG explained in a statement to BBC Sport.
The underlying problem was that the audio associated with the review was taken from the stump microphone positioned at the bowler’s end, leading to a discrepancy between the visual evidence—the ball appearing to be far from the bat—and the sound wave presented to TV umpire Chris Gaffaney. The operator’s selection error meant that the TV umpire concluded there was no conclusive evidence to contradict the on-field umpire Ahsan Raza’s original decision of not out.
This Snicko incident raises critical questions regarding the decision review system (DRS), which is essential in matches governed by the World Test Championship. As the host broadcaster, Fox Sports is responsible for supplying this technology and uses BBG to provide Snicko services. However, Fox has refrained from making any comments on the matter publicly.
The events unfolded during the 63rd over when Carey attempted a cut shot against Tongue, which resulted in an appeal from the England team. Initial replays showed a spike in sound but subsequently concluded that the ball had not made contact with the bat when that sound occurred. Under the current rules, this led Gaffaney to uphold the not-out decision.
Carey himself expressed some uncertainty regarding the incident: “I thought there was a feather or some sort of noise,” he stated, indicating he might have left the field had he been given out, albeit without confidence. There have been consistent concerns from the England team, with bowling consultant David Saker noting that they have raised the issue with match referee Jeff Crowe. He highlighted that it was unacceptable to deal with technology errors of this nature, especially after multiple inconclusive incidents during the series.
The ongoing debate regarding the reliability of Snicko technology has been a recurring theme throughout the series. Notably, in prior matches, specific decisions based on Snicko have been deemed controversial, sparking criticism and calls for improvements to ensure the technology is both accurate and reliable.
In a broader context, cricket increasingly relies on technological aids such as Snicko for umpiring decisions, and any errors can lead to significant disputes and impact player careers. The cricketing community is anxious to see if BBG Sports takes decisive action to prevent such mistakes in the future. Ultimately, the focus will be on ensuring the integrity of the game while maintaining the spirit of fair competition that cricket epitomizes.
