In this match, the Indian batsmen collapsed like a house of cards. However, KL Rahul emerged as the saviour, showing intent and staying at the crease. But then, a mistake by the third umpire led to his dismissal. In the 23rd over, Mitchell Starc bowled, and the second delivery passed close to Rahul’s bat, landing in the hands of wicketkeeper Alex Carey. The Australian players made a loud appeal, but the on-field umpire gave Rahul not out.
Australian captain Pat Cummins took a DRS review. During the review, it was seen that the ball was close to the bat when Rahul’s bat was hitting the pad. The spike on the Snickometer came from the connection between the bat and the pad, not from the ball and bat. During the review, the off-side angle was not shown, and the TV umpire gave the decision based on only two angles. Rahul’s face did not show any signs of worry because he knew that the sound came from the connection between the bat and the pad. But he was still given out.
As soon as Rahul was out, fans got angry on social media. During this, commentator Harsha Bhogle wrote, ‘You don’t have to rush a decision when you have so many angles to review. Especially if you are overturning the on-field umpire’s call.’ Apart from him, Murli Kartik and Robin Uthappa also tweeted angrily.