Team India's lower-order batsman Akash Deep expressed his frustration with the third umpire's decision in the second innings of the fourth Test against Australia. Akash Deep was dropped to Australian bowler Scott Boland despite Snicko showing poor sound after the ball passed the bat in the replays.
Chasing a record target of 340 runs for victory, India were 140/7 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in Melbourne on Monday, December 30. Controversy arose in the 71st over when Yashasvi Jaiswal was bowled out for 83 runs. Replays showed noticeable glove deflection, but no spike appeared on Snicko.
Watch: Akash deeply upset with the third umpire's decision
A few overs later, Akash Deep was dismissed for 7 runs after dismissing a delivery from Scott Boland to Travis Head at short leg. The dismissal came after a review by the Australian skipper after umpire Joel Wilson initially ruled it out. Replays confirmed a surge from Snicko as the ball went off the bat.
Akash Deep, however, expressed his frustration with the third umpire's decision as he believed the evidence was inconclusive. This left India eight wickets down with Australia just two wickets away from victory.
Watch the incident right here:
This time Snicko shows something!
India eight down!#AUSWIND pic.twitter.com/hIJm2fX2tf
— 7Cricket (@7Cricket) December 30, 2024
Akash Deep is upset with the third umpire's decision 👀 pic.twitter.com/7syDbIK9nE
– Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) December 30, 2024
Rishabh Pant's dismissal triggered the collapse in Indian batting
Captain Rohit Sharma and opener Yashasvi Jaiswal survived a Test spell by Mitchell Starc. However, Pat Cummins made a breakthrough in the 16th over, dismissing Sharma and KL Rahul in the same over. Starc dismissed Virat Kohli, caught at first slip for 5, in the final over the lunch break.
After the break, Rishabh Pant and Jaiswal put up resistance without losing a single run. However, part-time bowler Travis Head made a key breakthrough after tea, dismissing Pant with a semi-tracker. This led to a quick collapse with the Indian national cricket team losing three wickets for just 9 runs.
Ravindra Jadeja was dismissed after delivering a rising ball to the keeper and Nitish Kumar Reddy was caught by Steve Smith off Nathan Lyon, leaving India in a difficult situation.
Fantastic way to end the week – Mitchell Starc
Reflecting on the win, Mitchell Starc called it one of the best. He appreciated the crowd turnout, especially the support from the Indian and Australian fans. Starc also mentioned that he will deal with his back injury the next day.
“(Victoria) will be up there. A fantastic way to end the week, it was five fantastic days of cricket. The crowd, the presence of the fans from India and Australia was tremendous. Face tomorrow (talking) about his back injury). There's always belief in the group, it's been a feature of this group for a few years, calmness and just going with the flow,” Starc said.
Read also: Watch: Rishabh Pant calms down to avoid reckless shot after Sunil Gavaskar's 'stupid' criticism