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On Friday, January 3, Team India suffered another batting collapse on Day 1 of the Sydney Test. Neither of the top-order batters could make much of an impact with the bat, before Rishabh Pant played a steady knock of 40 off 98 deliveries to help India cross the 100-run mark in the middle. Virat Kohli, who is also seen struggling in the middle in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25, also fell in a similar trap.
Walking out when the Indian scoreboard read 17/2, Virat Kohli edged a delivery from Scott Boland towards Steve Smith, who was positioned at second slip. The Aussie batter dove low to his right to get his hand under the ball, which deflected towards Marnus Labuschagne, who completed a catch.
100%. No denying: Steve Smith confident on Virat Kohli’s dismissal
However, Virat Kohli stood firm in the middle, upon reviewing the third umpire Joel Wilson determined that the ball in Smith’s hand had made contact with the ground, thereby failing to meet the conditions of a fair catch as per MCC Law 33. Speaking on the sidelines of the fifth Test on Sydney, Smith was asked of the catch to which he replied, "100%. No denying it whatsoever, 100%." "But the umpire has made the decision. We'll move on," he continued.
However, the decision sparked outrage on social media, former ICC umpire Simon Taufel also commented on the same. Speaking on Channel 7, Simon Taufel said, "he could certainly understand what the third umpire's done there."
"I think you described it very well when you said that depending upon which side of the fence you sit on, you could probably build a case for either decision to be given. Listening to Joel Wilson's language, where he said the fingers were underneath the ball and then he saw it roll onto the ground, by his own language, he is telling us he believes the ball touched the ground,” Taufel added.
"There are two key things the TV umpire looks for. One is whether the fingers are underneath the ball, and he was satisfied on that point. However, he also believes the replay shows the ball on the ground. Here's the challenge: slowing it down with slow-motion. At real speed, it looks fine. But I can certainly understand what the third umpire's done. He believes he's seen the ball on the ground and has called it as he sees it,” he continued.
After surviving his wicket, Kohli remained unbeaten at 12 off 48 deliveries at lunch on Day 1 of the fifth Test in Sydney with the Indian scorecard reading 57 at the loss of three wickets. However, his stay was cut short by Scott Boland after lunch, adding five runs to his score.
