BRISBANE Heat captain Brendon McCullum accused rival captain George Bailey of missing a chance to uphold the spirit of cricket by a claiming a wicket for obstructing the field at the Gabba.
Controversy raged after the Brisbane Heat’s last ball Big Bash loss to the Hobart Hurricanes with Alex Ross controversially dismissed for obstructing the field when his bat hit the ball despite the fact he was trying avoid its path.
There was no way it appeared a deliberate obstruction.
MATCH:Hurricanes beat Heat in last-ball thriller
Bailey initially appealed for the run-out but expanded his appeal to obstructing the field after seeing a replay.
“From our point of view I felt frustrated with that decision,’’ McCullum said.
Personally I don’t think it was the right decision. We are not righteous in our stance on the spirit of the game but every now and then you get a chance to stand up to the spirit of cricket and tonight George and the Hurricanes missed that opportunity.’’
McCullum had a long and intense discussion with Bailey after the match when they stood their ground on opposing sides of the argument.
“We debated the philosophical merits of one another points but in the end my view of it and his view of it may have altered,’’ McCullum said.
“I don’t really care what the rules are. To me it is one of those grey areas like the Mankad. To me it falls into the spirit of the game and I was making that point to George.
“He is quite entitled to do it differently. We are not righteous in our stance but I do feel he missed an opportunity tonight. In time I feel he will regret not making another choice.
“Sometimes there are opportunities which are more important than the two points.
“He (Ross) was trying to veer away from the ball and if you look at the rules it is about wilfully obstructing the field.
“He was running away from the path of the ball. He was not impeding the ball. I was disappointed the appeal for upheld.
Bailey after the game conceded he appealed for obstructing the field.
“I am learning for the rule as we speak,’’ Bailey said.
“I appealed for the run out then when I saw on the replay Rossy changed his line we asked them to consider for obstructing the field as well.’’
The two teams are scheduled to meet again next week in what is sure to be a spirited encounter.
