Indian opener KL Rahul was the lone bright spot for India as he fought hard throughout the first session, adapting to the challenging conditions at the Optus stadium in Perth. However, the batter was eventually dismissed for 26 off the bowling of Mitchell Starc in a controversial decision by the third umpire.
A delivery from Starc went past Rahul’s bat with a distinguishable sound, leaving Aussie players excited but on-field umpire Richard Illingworth wasn’t interested. The decision was soon reviewed by the Kangaroos and the third umpire had a close look at the delivery multiple times.
The review revealed a sound coinciding with a spike on the snickometer as the ball passed Rahul’s bat. However, the ball also appeared to hit the batter’s pad at nearly the same moment, making it difficult to draw definitive conclusions.
Despite the ambiguity, the third umpire instructed Illingworth to overturn his decision, declaring Rahul OUT. The call immediately sparked outrage on social media and drew criticism from Australian commentators, who questioned whether there was sufficient evidence to overturn the on-field decision.
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