The Bachelor: Matt explains why he kept Monique in the competition

It was one of the most controversial episodes in Bachelor history — and Matt’s shock move left our jaws on the floor. Here’s why he did it.

Matt Agnew has opened up about the controversial decision he made that left fans shocked during Wednesday night’s explosive episode of The Bachelor.

In what was certainly the most explicit scene we’ve ever experienced in the series, all hell broke loose during the cocktail party when Matt confronted Monique Morley after Abbie Chatfield told him she’d called him a “disrespectful pig” and “dog c**t” behind his back.

Monique denied the whole thing, leading to Matt conducting in-depth investigation involving almost all the girls — the “witnesses”, in fact — and causing him to walk out on the rose ceremony in frustration.

READ ALL THE JAMES WEIR RECAPS HERE

Matt grilled all the women to try and get to the bottom of it.

Despite all the drama, Matt surprised everyone by choosing to keep Monique in the competition, sending home children’s entertainer Julia Hyde instead.

The astrophysicist defended his decision in an interview with Nova’s Fitzy and Wippa this morning, saying he needed “more time” to clarify the situation.

“For me, it was a case of both I wasn’t confident enough in what had happened yet, I needed more time,” Matt explained.

“And I’d had such an amazing date with Mon that I just did want to further make sure I made the right decision.”

He also expressed his frustration at not being able to get to the bottom of the situation — even after grilling all the contestants.

“There was just complete inconsistency,” Matt said.

“By the end, I think the most clarity I could have was that it was said — but the degree of jocularity to that is still in question.

“People were saying it was definitely malicious, people saying it was definitely said in jest, almost endearment … The fact was that there was no clarity, so I did need more time to figure out where I stood.”

The decision came down to Monique (left) and Julia — and Matt chose Monique.

Speaking on the Kyle and Jackie O Show on KIIS, Matt added that having a “fantastic” date with Monique earlier in the show had contributed to his decision.

“I’d had a fantastic date with her and there was a really strong connection there … I still had to make the decision (to give her a rose) based on the connection (we had) then,” he said.

Last night, viewers were on the edge of their seats when a stressed-looking Matt put down the final rose and walked out of the room, leaving Julia and Monique waiting nervously to see who he’d pick.

He walked out of the ceremony.

It was all very dramatic — and when grilled on whether he was legitimately overwhelmed at the time, Matt hinted that he’d been following directions.

“There’s an element of theatrics,” he admitted to Kyle and Jackie O, explaining that he was simply recreating for the cameras actual moments he’d had by himself beforehand.

“When I did those things, I was doing it in private. So while I was being theatrical (during the ceremony) in that regard, I did have those moments (privately), I had my head in my hands.”

The Bachelor continues 7.30pm tonight on Ten.