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England's frustration reached a boiling point on the opening day of the third Ashes Test in Adelaide following a technical blunder that cost them the vital wicket of Alex Carey. The controversy erupted when "Snicko" technology failed to detect an edge while Carey was on 72, allowing him to remain at the crease. Alex Carey went on to capitalise on the mistake, scoring a superb century on his home ground. Following the day's play, the Australian wicketkeeper admitted he was "lucky" to survive, confirming he had indeed edged the delivery from Josh Tongue.
Snickometer chief apologises after Alex Carey not-out call sparks Ashes row
The fallout from the incident was immediate, as BBG Sports, the company responsible for the Snicko technology, issued a formal apology and took full responsibility for the failure. They clarified that the missed edge was the result of a human error by a camera operator rather than a software malfunction. Investigations revealed that the operator had inadvertently monitored the wrong audio feed, raising the volume on the microphone at the bowler’s end instead of the one at the striker's end.
This technical oversight not only denied England a breakthrough at a pivotal moment in the match but has also reignited debates regarding the reliability of the Decision Review System (DRS) in high-stakes series. With Carey transforming a potential dismissal into a match-defining hundred, the error by the technology team is likely to be remembered as a major turning point in the Adelaide Test.
“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. In light of this, BBG takes full responsibility for the error,” A BBG Sports statement read.
After concluding the day's play with a score of 106, Alex Carey addressed the media during a post-match press conference to discuss his performance and the team's position. With Australia reaching stumps at 326 for eight, the century-maker was remarkably candid about the technical controversy that had occurred earlier in his innings.
I thought there was a bit of a feather or some sort of noise: Alex Carey
Carey openly confessed to edging the delivery, acknowledging that the bat-pad noise caught by the stump microphone should have resulted in his dismissal. His admission confirmed England's suspicions and highlighted the magnitude of the technical error, given that he went on to add significant runs to the Australian total following the missed call.
“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? If I was given out, I think I would have reviewed it – probably not confidently though. It was a nice sound as it passed the bat, yeah," Carey said at the press conference after the Day 1's play.
“Snicko obviously didn’t line up, did it? That’s just the way cricket goes sometimes, isn’t it? You have a bit of luck, and maybe it went my way today,” he added.
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