England fuming, Snicko operator takes blame for DRS howler during Carey’s century

Adelaide: England have slammed the accuracy of DRS after day-one centurion Alex Carey admitted he edged a ball behind on 72 before it was revealed that an operator error involving the wrong stump microphone cost the tourists in Adelaide.

Carey’s first Test century in his home town was the headline act on Wednesday, but Usman Khawaja’s remarkable and unexpected return to the XI in place of an ill Steve Smith paved the way for a fighting 82 that delivered selectors further headaches.

Australia wobbled early after winning the toss and batting but fought back superbly to reach stumps at 8-326, with Carey bringing up his third Test hundred in the final hour of play. The wicketkeeper-batsman, in terrific form this series, looked skyward in celebration, three months after his father, Gordon, passed away from cancer.

“To make a hundred here in front of home fans and family ... it was special. I guess you know why I was looking at the heavens,” Carey said on Fox.

Chants of “Carey, Carey, Carey” reverberated around the Adelaide Oval as a record crowd of 56,298 – the most for a cricket match at the venue – watched England rue a missed opportunity, having reduced Australia to 4-94 in the 25th over.

Marnus Labuschagne (19) and Cam Green (0) fell to catches on the leg side in three balls, seemingly leaving the hosts vulnerable, before Carey’s 106 and contributions from Josh Inglis (32) and Mitchell Starc (33 not out) boosted Australia to a respectable total on a pitch that got better as the day went on.

There was drama, however, when Carey was given not out on 72, despite a big spike on replays, albeit a few frames before the ball went past the bat. Despite England sending the decision to the third umpire, it was not overturned.

Carey, an Ashes villain in the eyes of the tourists, later admitted he bottom edged the Josh Tongue delivery through to keeper Jamie Smith when Australia was 6-245 in the 63rd over.

However, in a major blunder, the third party in charge of providing “Snicko” to broadcasters, BBG Sports, made an operator error, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation speaking on the condition of anonymity.

The operator put up the sound on the stump microphone at the bowler’s end, instead of Carey’s end, hence why the big spike appeared. While Carey may still have got an edge, the wrong graphic was shown and was the reason why it was out of sync.

BBG sports founder and head of technology Warren Brennan said the company took “full responsibility” for the error that led to Carey’s reprieve.

“Given that Alex Carey admitted he had hit the ball in question, the only conclusion that can be drawn from this, is that the ‘Snicko’ operator at the time must have selected the incorrect stump mic for audio processing,” Brennan told this masthead. “In light of this, BBG Sports takes full responsibility for the error.”

For his part, Carey said, “I thought there was a bit of a feather or some sort of noise when it passed the bat.

“It looked a bit funny on the replay, didn’t it, with the noise coming early? You have a bit of luck and maybe it went my way today.”

England assistant coach David Saker was less than impressed and said the team would consider making a formal complaint.

“I think the calibration of ‘Snicko’ [has been] out quite a bit and that’s been probably the case for the series,” Saker said. “There’s been some things that don’t really measure up. It was a pretty important decision. Those things hurt, but we’ll get through it. You’d think in this day and age… the technology’s good enough to pick things up like that.

“There’s been concerns about it for the whole series. We shouldn’t be talking about that after a day of playing. It should just be better than that.”

Former Test umpire Simon Taufel said he believed there was an issue with the technology, which robbed England of a chance to roll through Australia.

“My gut tells me from all of my experience on field and also as a TV umpire, I think Alex Carey has actually hit that ball and the technology calibration hasn’t been quite right,” Taufel said on the Seven coverage.

Within 21 hours – from midday on Tuesday to 9am on day one – Khawaja’s Test career swung from appearing all but finished to being dramatically reignited.

An early morning bat in the Adelaide Oval nets piqued curiosity, particularly after captain Pat Cummins said a day earlier the Travis Head-Jake Weatherald opening partnership was too strong to break up with the chance to retain the urn on the line.

Smith reported symptoms of nausea and dizziness – he is being treated for a potential vestibular issue – and was ruled out of the match after initial concerns reported by this masthead on Tuesday.

A hug from Weatherald and an exasperated look from Smith following a lengthy conversation with coach Andrew McDonald were the final clues before an unusual team sheet was submitted, listing Khawaja at No.4 and Smith missing a home Test for the first time since his ban for his involvement in “Sandpapergate”.

Khawaja has been sensitive to criticism of his recent form, adamant he deserved to remain in the side despite managing just one Test century since the 2023 Ashes.

This was the chance for the self-proclaimed “people’s champ” to answer the doubters and silence former Test stars who had declared his international career over. He did it in style as Australia slumped to 2-33 inside 10 overs.

Weatherald was first to go after gloving Jofra Archer (3-29 off 16 overs) in the air to Jamie Smith before Zak Crawley scooped up a magnificent catch to send Head packing for 10 off 28 balls – his lowest score in an Adelaide Test since the seven he made against India in 2020.

Khawaja’s third stint at the No.4 position in Test cricket – after Galle in 2016 and the first Test in Perth earlier this series when back spasms prevented him from opening – should have ended on five, but he was dropped by Harry Brook.

Khawaja’s career has been defined by sliding-doors moments. Had Head not contracted COVID-19 in 2021, Khawaja would not have made twin hundreds in Sydney against England. Had Smith not been ruled out, Khawaja may well have retired before Sydney.

And had Brook held on to a catch at an awkward but manageable height, Khawaja would not have been afforded the platform he enjoyed on Wednesday.

That reprieve sharpened his focus as the Adelaide heat intensified. Khawaja upped the tempo, prioritised strike rotation, and looked noticeably more at ease than he has as an opener – something he has long maintained – raising his bat for a half-century.

A fairytale century, after being effectively axed a day earlier, loomed as one of the great Ashes redemption stories.

It was not to be. With fielders stacked on the leg side, Khawaja swatted a sweep shot straight to Tongue off Will Jacks, 18 runs shy of triple figures.

Cam Green’s $4.2 million IPL payday on Tuesday night proved unfortunate timing, with the all-rounder recording his fifth duck in 54 Test innings by chipping Archer to Brydon Carse just in front of square. In the IPL, Green might have flicked the same ball into the stands, but the tentative shot only intensified scrutiny on his form at home.

Despite being labelled by Greg Chappell as Australia’s best batting talent since Ricky Ponting, the 26-year-old remains without a Test hundred in Australia and has a career average of 33.3 that does not reflect his undoubted potential.