BBL: Josh Philippe’s stunning admission in controversial run out
The officiating in this year’s Big Bash is already under fire and the latest blunder has only added to the controversy after the man at the centre of the incident made a stunning admission. WATCH the run out here.
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Sydney Sixers’ wicket keeper Josh Philippe has admitted he wouldn’t have been surprised or upset if his controversial run out of Adelaide Strikers’ all-rounder Matt Short was given not out because he knew he dropped the ball before he hit the stumps.
The officiating in this year’s Big Bash is already under fire because of the unavailability of DRS to correct wrong decisions and the bizarre case of an umpire changing his mind and scratching his nose.
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The latest blunder has only added to the complaints with fans already taking to social media asking how Short could possibly have been given out when he failed to make it back to his crease after a mix up with his batting partner Jonathan Wells.
Replays showed Philippe losing control of the ball just before he knocked off the bails with his gloves which meant Short should have stayed but the third umpire still ruled that he was out.
Philippe admitted he dropped the ball but said everything happened so quickly he wasn’t sure whether that was before or after he made contact with the stumps.
“I knew I didn’t quite have it but I guess I kind of dragged it onto the stumps. That’s how it felt, but I wasn’t sure,” he told News Corp.
“The video looked a bit inconclusive but to be honest I was unsure.
“I thought I might have put it on, I thought I might not have, it was 50-50.”
The one thing Philippe was sure about was that he would have accepted the decision without complaint if it had gone against him.
“That’s why we have this amazing technology, isn’t It? To hopefully get it right,” he said.
“Either way, if it wasn’t out I wouldn’t have been disappointed or upset because I actually didn’t know.”
Philippe went on to blast an unbeaten 83 off 52 balls as the Sixers’ overhauled Adelaide’s total of 6-176 with three balls to spare in a thriller at Coffs Harbour.
Earmarked as a future international, the 22-year-old has quickly become a target for opposition bowlers since bursting into the spotlight but Sixers coach Greg Shipperd said his latest stunner was proof he wasn’t just a quick scorer but a quick learner as well.
“I think teams are really zeroing in on strategies around him so he’s probably getting served up a different diet of balls on different lengths and on different lines so he’s having to make small adjustments to that but he’s got the recipe right,” Shipperd said.
“And there’s still room for improvement. He’s tinkering with a few little technical things that would make him even better as well so we’re looking forward to seeing that unfold in the games to come. ”
Originally published as BBL: Josh Philippe’s stunning admission in controversial run out