K L Rahul.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Perth: It was a sort of deja vu for Rishabh Pant when K L Rahul was controversially given out by the TV umpire following Australia's review on the opening morning of the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy here on Friday.
Rahul, the only batter to have shown some spunk to withstand the Aussie pace barrage, was adjudged caught behind by third umpire Richard Illingworth off the bowling of Mitchell Starc with sufficient doubt over whether the bat feathered the ball or the clipped the bat.
Pant, who was given out in a similar manner against New Zealand in Mumbai, looked askance at the non-striker's end while Rahul, who was about to mark his guard after watching the replays on the giant screen, was left flabbergasted. The Karnataka batter flashed a wry smile before delivering a mouthful.
While the replays from the two angles appeared inconclusive, the broadcaster couldn't provide another angle that Illingworth asked for. In the absence of conclusive evidence it was but natural to expect the TV umpire to stay with the on-field decision but Illingworth overruled Richard Kettleborough's not-out verdict, ending the right-hander's 73-ball (26 runs) vigil.
Illingworth's decision naturally didn't go down well with the Indian fans who blasted the Englishman's eagerness to arrive at the ruling.
Even a few former cricketers took to social media to pan Illingworth.
Former India opener Wasim Jaffer felt Rahul was "hard done by" the decision.
"Third umpire asked for another angle which wasn't provided. I'd assume he'd only ask for another angle if he wasn't sure. Then if he wasn't sure, why did he overturn the on field not out call? Poor use of technology and proper protocol not followed. KL hard done by," Jaffer wrote on X.
Commentating on 7Cricket, Australian batting great Matthew Hayden held a similar view.
"His pad and bat are not together at that point in time as the ball passes. It's (the bat hitting pad) after, in fact, the ball passes the edge. Does Snicko pick up the sound of the bat hitting the pad? We're assuming (Snicko) may be the outside edge of the bat but that may not be the case," he said.