The Adelaide Strikers sued the Free Bowl to sack Marcus Stoinis in a New Year’s Eve clash, claiming the Melbourne Stars hitter was too late to reach the crease.
Officials at the Big Bash updated the terms of play regarding batters timeouts last summer, stipulating that hitters must be “ready to receive the ball” within 75 seconds of being ejected.
Striker Adam Horse argued that the 75-second timeout rule should have been applied at Adelaide.
Stoinis returned to form on New Year’s Eve, pitching 74 of 35 in the Melbourne Stars’ eight-run win at the Adelaide Oval.
However, the Strikers wanted a free bowl at the stumps of Stoinis, as allowed by the BBL’s terms of play.
If the incoming batter is not “ready” within 75 seconds, the umpire directs the batter to stand 5 meters across the pitch to make the first pitch of the inning and the bowler (in this case Wes Ager) to allow free shots. stump.
A pitch is counted on the scorecard as faced by the batter, and if the ball hits a wicket, the batter is outbowled.
“To be honest, I was covering his first ball, so I’m pretty sure he timed out. At 75 seconds, he wasn’t ready.
“If that’s the rule, I just hope I can play by it.
“That’s my only experience with a clock running out.
“We asked questions and appealed, but nothing happened.
“I’m sure his time is up.”
An analysis of Fox Cricket, broadcast by cricket.com.au, found that 102 seconds elapsed between the sacking of Beau Webster and being caught by Peter Siddle before Stoinis faced his first delivery.
Eleven days ago, against the Sydney Thunder, when batting partner Matt Short yelled “Hosie, look up” as the 75-second countdown was nearly over, the next batter, the Englishman Hose, Still scratching guard and gardening.
“The umpires have been very keen on me at the crease the last few games,” Hose said.
“I had to change my fastball routine after being warned several times.
“They were so into me, so I guess that’s why my frustration came in.
“Hopefully we can move on for the rest of the tournament. If it’s going to be a rule, it has to be enforced.”
Stoinis, aware of the ticking clock, dismissed Horse’s claim, claiming that Adelaide’s field had not arrived in time.
“When I checked the center (guard), I could see the field moving, so I was standing,” he said.
“I didn’t really know I had to stand there anyway.”
The Fox Cricket broadcast didn’t show when Stoinis checked center as the camera focused on Strikers bowler Rashid Khan who turned to his new defensive position 75 seconds after Webster’s wicket fell. .
Stoinis was also critical of the Strikers’ appeal for a timeout call against Hilton Cartwright in 14 overs.
“The same thing happened with Hilts,” Stoinis said.
“They (the strikers) complained about it, but the field was moving and it was a dead ball.”
An analysis of Fox Cricket’s broadcast when Cartwright arrived at Creeds showed that 73 seconds had passed when the batter appeared to give the referee a thumbs-up, but 82 seconds later he entered his stance. , showed readiness by hitting the bat. face up.
“I will not sue (about it),” Stoinis added.
“If someone is trying to slow down the game by taking advantage of it, the rules apply.”
The 75 second rule was introduced in WBBL|07 and BBL|11 but has not yet been enforced.
The change was not meant to catch sluggish hitters, but to encourage faster play after game times ballooned well over three hours in recent years.
Last night’s matchup between the Strikers and the Stars on New Year’s Eve lasted about 3 hours and 20 minutes in total.