DRS drama continues in Ashes: England’s Jamie Smith given out in another controversial Snicko decision

For the second day running in the Ashes, the Decision Review System (DRS) and Snicko technology courted controversy as England batter Jamie Smith was given out by a debatable third-umpire call on Thursday.

The situation arose after Smith played and missed while attempting a pull shot off Pat Cummins, prompting an appeal from Australia for a catch behind. On-field umpire Nitin Menon referred the decision upstairs to third umpire Chris Gaffaney without giving an out or not-out verdict, with neither team opting for a DRS review.

Gaffaney ruled that the catch had carried cleanly to wicketkeeper Alex Carey and adjudged Smith out, despite the Snicko spike appearing only a frame after the ball had passed the bat.

The incident came a day after Carey himself benefited from a contentious decision on his way to a hundred. England was left fuming on Wednesday after Carey survived a caught-behind appeal, with Snicko failing to register what appeared to be a clear edge.

Carey stood his ground after the on-field decision went in his favour, but England reviewed the call. While Snicko detected a sound, it did not align with the ball’s passage past the bat during the replay, and the original decision was upheld.

Published on Dec 18, 2025