Jonny Bairstow’s controversial dismissal on Day 5 of the second Ashes Test triggered angry scenes at Lord’s and divided opinion across the cricketing world.
On the last ball of the 52nd over, Cameron Green sent down a bouncer. Bairstow ducked, scratched his crease with his back foot, and meandered up the pitch.
Meanwhile, Alex Carey caught the ball and immediately threw it at the stumps to dislodge the bails.
Bairstow was caught out of his crease, and the third umpire’s verdict sent the English wicketkeeper trudging from the field in fury.
But should the wicket have been given? Or should the Australians have prioritised the often talked about, but almost impossible to define, ‘spirit of cricket’?
Here’s the full breakdown on the rules, what everyone said after the incident – and the ultimate verdict.
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Cummins explains rationale behind runout | 00:34
THE RULES
Under the rules, a batter cannot leave the crease until the ball is dead.
Often, a batter will check with the keeper – as easily as a look – to see if the ball is dead. But in the end, it is an umpire’s decision to make – and in this case, the umpire did not announce the end of the over or declare play dead.
According to law 20.1.2 of the MCC’s Laws of Cricket, “the ball shall be considered to be dead when it is clear to the bowler’s end umpire that the fielding side and both batters at the wicket have ceased to regard it as in play.”
Crucially, Carey had thrown the ball while Bairstow was still in his crease before wandering off – making it clear that play was well and truly alive.
As far as the rules go, it was clear: Bairstow was out.
Even England admitted as much.
Captain Ben Stokes said: “I am not disputing the fact it is out because it is out.”
Coach Brendon McCullum said: “By the letter of the law, he is out.”
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WHAT THE AUSSIES SAID
At the close of play, Aussie opener Usman Khawaja told Channel 9: “The decision is in the umpire’s hands.
“If the umpire deems it a dead ball today, it’s a dead ball. It’s just like yesterday’s catch [when a Starc grab was ruled not out].
“You have to accept the umpire’s decision, that’s why the umpires are there. There is always grey areas in cricket.
“The way it played out in some respects was pretty disappointing. I love Stuey Broad, he’s one of my favourite cricketers, the way he plays it … and he was pretty riled up out there, which you don’t want to see. It is what it is.”
Captain Pat Cummins fiercely defended the move, saying the Australians had noticed Bairstow repeatedly leaving his crease early – and that Bairstow himself had previously attempted to dismiss Australians in the same way.
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Cummins said: “I thought it was fair. You see Jonny do it all the time. He did it on Day One to (David) Warner. He did it in 2019 to Steve (Smith). It’s a really common thing for keepers to do if they see a batter keep on leaving their crease.
“Caz (Carey) – full credit to him. He saw the opportunity a few balls beforehand and rolled at the stumps. Jonny left his crease and we’ll leave the rest to the umpires,” Cummins added.
Speaking of the ‘spirit of cricket’, he went on: “We’ve all played a lot of cricket. The spirit of cricket is really important.
“The way we’ve gone about it over the last couple of years has been fantastic. We should be really proud as a group.”
Bairstow attempted dubious runout first? | 00:38
WHAT THE POMS SAID
In the immediate aftermath of the incident, Stuart Broad arrived at the crease. He told the Aussies: “[That was] literally the worst thing I’ve ever seen in cricket.
“You’ll forever be remembered for that.”
England coach Brendon McCullum was asked about the dismissal after the game, and replied that he “can’t imagine we’ll be having a beer any time soon” with the Australian team.
“When you become older and more mature, you realise the game and the spirit of it is something you need to protect,” McCullum told BBC Test Match Special.
“You have to make decisions in the moment, and they can have effects on games and people’s characters.
“By the letter of the law, he is out. Jonny was not trying to take a run. It is one of those difficult ones to swallow and you look at the small margins, it is incredibly disappointing.
“But lots of people will have their opinion on both sides of the fence. The most disappointing thing is that it will be the most talked about event of a great Test match.”
England captain Ben Stokes said: “I am not disputing the fact it is out because it is out.
If the shoe was on the other foot, I would have put more pressure on the umpires and asked whether they had called over and had a deep think about the whole spirit of the game and whether I would want to do something like that.
“For Australia, it was the matchwinning moment. Would I want to win a game in that manner? The answer is no,” Stokes added.
Stokes ignites spirit of the game debate | 00:42
WHAT THE MEDIA SAID
“England have nothing to complain about, it was a dozy bit of cricket from Jonny Bairstow,” former England captain Michael Atherton said on Sky Sports commentary.
Former Australian Test captain Mark Taylor continued: “People are going to be unhappy about it, but it’s the right decision.”
Former England captain Eoin Morgan said on the Sky Sports broadcast: “I don’t see it compromising the spirit of the game.
“There was a huge sense of frustration [in the crowd] but I can’t understand why? It’s complete naivety around Bairstow’s dismissal.
“The ball is not dead at any stage when Bairstow leaves his crease. He was obviously in his own little bubble – and you cannot do that.
“It’s actually really smart from Carey, recognising what is going on – Bairstow living in his own little world – and seeing an opportunity to take a wicket.”
Yet another ex-England skipper, Andrew Strauss, said: “In truth, I think there was absolutely nothing wrong with it but, of course, the crowd will see it through English patriotic eyes.
“Bairstow was being dozy going outside of his crease. I was pretty comfortable with what Australia did.”
Ricky Ponting was his typical blunt self, saying: “The more clarification we got, that it goes down as stumped and not run out in the scorebook, that’s enough said.
“Jonny did the wrong thing and he has paid with losing his wicket in an Ashes Test, as simple as that.”
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WHAT OTHER COUNTRIES SAID
India spinner Ravi Ashwin, who often ignites controversy for his mankad dismissals, supported the Aussies.
“The keeper would never have a dip at the stumps from that far out in a test match unless he or his team have noticed a pattern of the batter leaving his crease after leaving a ball like Bairstow did,” he wrote on social media.
“We must applaud the game smarts of the individual rather than skewing it towards unfair play or spirit of the game.”
WHAT OTHER FORMER PLAYERS SAID
Former Australian cricketer Brad Hogg hit out at the Australians, also weighing in on to yesterday’s controversial not-out ruling when a Mitch Starc catch was judged to have hit the ground.
He tweeted: “Starc catch out, controlled ball. Bairstow not taking advantage, had done it a number of times before at the end of an over & this is not the same as a mankad. Want Australia to win obviously, but the games entertainment is more important than a cheap wicket. #ashes #ENGvsAUS”
He also wrote: “Bairstow wicket, Not Out. Spirit of cricket pushed to the boundary. Not attempting a run, end of over, scratched crease then walked for the regulation BS chat between overs between batsman. #ashes #ENGvsAUS”
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But Aussie cult hero Merv Hughes put it bluntly: “Learn the rules and there wouldn’t be a problem!”
And ex-Aussie wicketkeeper Darren Berry was full of praise for Carey, writing: “Brilliant! One bloke with elite awareness, the other lost in space. Before you English start crying, Carey let the ball go before Bairstow had moved, but he anticipated he would. Umpire had not called over – (it was) smart Attention to detail. (It’s) The little things.”
WHAT THE JOURNOS SAID
Renowned cricket writer Geoff Lemon tweeted: “I’m genuinely mystified by today. The first lesson of batting is stay in your ground. Keepers attempt those runouts routinely. Then suddenly people are raging like it’s some shock new thing.”
He further added: “The concept of dead ball is not complicated. The umpires are the ones who deemed it live, because the passage of play had not concluded,” and replied to another comment saying: “The batter’s actions don’t affect the ball being live. It’s an umpire decision based on what the fielders are doing.”
Legendary broadcaster Jonathan Agnew told the BBC: “Let’s get one thing straight first: technically, Jonny Bairstow’s contentious dismissal was out.”
He added: “Others will disagree with me, some of my Test Match Special colleagues do, but that is why I would have liked to have seen Australia give Bairstow a warning before going through with that kind of dismissal.”
THE VERDICT
According to the rules, the decision was completely correct.
As far as the murky ‘spirit of cricket’ goes, it’s more complex.
Bairstow was not seeking to gain an advantage or attempt a run, which is why the Australians could have warned him prior to the dismissal in an attempt to put an end to what is, at the least, a bad habit.
But England – and Bairstow – had attempted to dismiss Australians in the same match in identical fashion, and also did not offer a prior warning.
In the end, there is no clear answer. The Australians saw an opportunity and they took it – and took a 2-0 lead in the series.
