Published: Jan 06, 2018, 01:48 PM (IST)
Edited: Jan 06, 2018, 01:48 PM (IST)
Mason Crane‘s Test debut turned out to be a roller-coaster of luck. After bowling a spell of 0 for 100, Crane managed to dismiss set Usman Khawaja on Day Three of the fifth Ashes Test. The ball was later declared a no-ball, denying Crane’s maiden Test wicket. To add salt to his wound, Khawaja went on to score 171, before Crane finally got rid of him, with Jonny Bairstow pulling off a clear stumping. However, Graeme Swann believes Crane had his foot behind the line and the decision of no-ball was wrong.
“When his foot lands I reckon there’s half a millimetre behind the line. When it first lands, when the toe lands, there’s definitely the smallest amount behind the line. These umpires don’t know what they’re doing! I swear these umpires are clueless. It’s so obvious. It wasn’t much but there was definitely a millimetre or two of boot behind the line,” sportingnews.com quoted Swann as saying.
“This is absolutely disgraceful third umpiring. Open your eyes! Whoever the third umpire is, just go home. Get out of the room, let someone do it. It’s like your mum trying to record something on the video recorder, she doesn’t know what she’s doing,” he added.
Earlier, Ian Chappell had raised a question on Joe Root’s captaincy and putting Crane to bowl. “I wonder about Joe Root’s feel for the game at times. I thought Crane was bowling well and looked as though something might be just around the corner in the way of a wicket and he took him off. I think part of the reason he hasn’t got a wicket is down to Root’s captaincy. I don’t think he understands much about leg spin bowling,” Chappell told Nine Network in an interview.
