There’s Something About Michael
Friday, November 26, 2010 : The Ashes, TV & Radio, England, Tests, Technology
There’s Something About Michael Clarke’s bat, a Slazenger V12. Sometimes when the ball takes the edge it isn’t picked up on Hotspot, based on today’s evidence.
During his tortuous innings there were two incidents where Michael Clarke got an inside edge. The first when an LBW shout was rightly turned down where the ball clipped the bat on the way through to hitting the pad. This was a thickish edge that surprisingly only showed a faint white mark in Hotspot. Why?
Later all of the England slip cordon went up for a catch behind off Steven Finn. Andrew Strauss was convinced Clarke had got an inside edge through to keeper Prior. Aleem Dar gave the decision not out, but Strauss referred it such was his conviction. Again Hotspot showed nothing, yet the stump microphone and later the more reliable Snicko gave good evidence of a touch.
Why did Hotpsot on these two occasions not show a clear mark? Is there something significant about Michael Clarke’s bat? Do the stickers that are on the side faces reduce the friction induced when the ball collides with the bat?
This is not an isolated incident. When Pakistan played Australia in Hobart, Salman Butt discussed two moments where he felt Clarke had clearly edged the ball only for Hotspot to not bear out his claim.
This is in no way a slur on Michael Clarke or Slazenger Bats. He should be commended for ‘walking’ today, when out edging an attempted pull. But the ICC and the MCC as the law makers need to research this phenomenon. Perhaps there should be no stickers or surface material allowed around the edges of bats?
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