Watch: New South Wales batter Daniel Hughes got a reprieve during a Marsh Cup game against Tasmania on September 27, when a white towel fell off from Riley Meredith‘s trousers.
Tasmania got a head start in the fourth game of the 2023/24 Marsh Cup season, but they didn’t get off to a good start. Opening pitcher Caleb Jewell fell for a duck on his third pitch of the day. By the end of the innings, half the Tasmanian team had returned to the pavilion with a score of 57.
The rearguard performances of Beau Webster (65) and Patrick Dooley (39) lifted Tasmania to 198 points. Wickets were shared, with Jackson Bird, Hayden Carr and Jack Edwards taking his two each.
New South Wales, on the other hand, took the initiative and pursued small goals without much fuss. Edwards top-scored in the first half of his bat with an astonishing 92 off 63 balls, while his partner Hughes also scored a half-century (58 runs).
However, a strange thing happened in the first over of the New South Wales innings when Hughes retreated on the last ball of the over just as Riley Meredith was about to play the ball.
Meredith had dropped the towel into her pants just as she was about to take the delivery steps. Distracted by her, Hughes backed away from the ball, but perhaps reflexively swung at it, deflecting it.
The advantage passed to the wicketkeeper, Hughes was ruled out and the Tasmanian players celebrated. But Hughes wasn’t ready. He complained about distracting the referee.
The on-field umpires then met and, after a short discussion, reversed the decision and signaled a dead ball. Law 20.4.2.6 allows the umpire to declare the ball dead if “the batter is distracted by noise.” or movement during preparation for or reception of a throw, etc. ”
Hughes scored a 71-ball 58 as New South Wales chased the target by six wickets with over 15 overs remaining.
Watch a wicket get overturned in the Marsh Cup as towel falls from the bowler’s trousers:
The white towel has been thrown (dropped?) in Melbourne! A huge reprieve for Dan Hughes for a very unusual – but correct – reason #MarshCup pic.twitter.com/om1PcL08C1
– cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) 27. 2023 年 9 月
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