It's the debate that just keeps being reignited by poor decisions and last night the BBL was once again in the spotlight after Hurricanes wicket-keeper Ben McDermott confirmed suspicions that Stars opener Andre Fletcher had been wrongfully dismissed, with no DRS to save him.<\/p>\n
McDermott's admission came during commentary of the Stars' innings after Fletcher was given out caught behind in the very first over, with barely an appeal.<\/p>\n
Fletcher was furious as he walked off following the dismissal, shaking his head and becoming animated the whole way back to the pavilion.<\/p>\n
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The replays appeared to confirm that his frustration was warranted, with Fox Cricket commentator Shane Warne immediately arguing that his bat had struck the ground, not the ball.<\/p>\n
"He can't believe it. I think he's hit the ground here," Warne said.<\/p>\n
"I don't think he's hit it."<\/p>\n
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The commentators then turned to McDermott behind the stumps for his take on the controversial call.<\/p>\n
"I didn't think he nicked it, no, boys," McDermott admitted.<\/p>\n
"I thought he hit the ground but it sort of did swing away after the bounce so I thought he might have \u2026 but I thought he hit the ground."<\/p>\n
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Last month there was the opposite issue with the umpire's call, with Thunder batsman Usman Khawaja clearly nicking a delivery from Scorchers paceman AJ Tye in the sixth over of a run chase, only for umpire Simon Lightbody to decide that Khawaja's bat had hit the ground<\/a>.<\/p>\n "I thought the bat hit the ground, mate," umpire Lightbody told a stunned Tye.<\/p>\n Tye replied, gesturing: "The bat hit the ground? It was that far off the ground!"<\/p>\n Khawaja's bat was off the ground by some margin, yet he was given not out. The absence of DRS ensured the incorrect call couldn't be overturned.<\/p>\n Australian cricket great Mark Waugh, commentating for Fox Cricket, was baffled by the decision.<\/p>\n "It was nowhere near the ground. He's just had a shocker there, unfortunately for the Perth Scorchers," Waugh said.<\/p>\n "That's just a huge nick. That's a big nick."<\/p>\n Another howler last week saw Warne blow up on social media arguing that the poor umpiring decisions could "ruin players lives"<\/a>.<\/p>\n "I'm sorry but who is in charge of the umpires in Australia? Every game we see horrible mistakes (and) it's embarrassing for the BBL completion," Shane Warne tweeted.<\/p>\n "The Big Bash is a wonderful tournament but it's fast becoming a joke and could ruin players careers. Please can we have DRS immediately!"<\/p>\n For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by<\/em><\/strong> clicking here!<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n