Ashes 2023: When people don’t like a dismissal under the laws, they cite ‘spirit of cricket’, says Simon Taufel

Bairstow’s controversial stumping in the second Ashes Test has opened a debate, with the likes of England coach Brendon McCullum and skipper Ben Stokes saying it was not in the spirit of the game.

FILE PHOTO: Umpire Simon Taufel looks on.

Lambasting the “hypocrisy and lack of consistency” shown by some following Jonny Bairstow’s controversial stumping in the recent Lord’s Test, former ICC elite umpire Simon Taufel said that people cite the ‘spirit of the game’ when they don’t like a dismissal under the laws of cricket.

Bairstow’s controversial stumping in the second Ashes Test has opened a debate, with the likes of England coach Brendon McCullum and skipper Ben Stokes saying it was not in the spirit of the game.

“My experience is when people don’t like a dismissal under the Laws of Cricket, they cite the Spirit of Cricket to support their view,” Taufel wrote in a lengthy post on LinkedIn.

“Was Jonny Bairstow’s dismissal at Lord’s a breach of the Spirit of Cricket? Have you seen any umpire tell a fielding side that the keeper standing back is not allowed to attempt a stumping? Was there a complaint from anyone when Bairstow tried to stump Marnus exactly the same way in the first innings? What has Jonny Bairstow said about his dismissal? He has been very quiet. Why?” he added.

After the dismissal, Australia had to endure the crowd’s bitterness for the rest of the match as it was booed and jeered with chants of “same old Aussies, always cheating” reverberating at the Lord’s.

Apart from the Prime Ministers of both countries, several former and current players have also expressed their views on the same.

“The hypocrisy and lack of consistency from some people and groups is quite interesting and concerning for the future of our game. Maybe I am the odd one out here?” Taufel wrote.

The incident had occurred on the final day of play when, after ducking a slow bouncer from Cameron Green, Bairstow had immediately left his crease to have a chat with Stokes in the middle, believing that the ball was ‘dead’.

However, wicketkeeper Alex Carey played within the rules and broke the stumps and third umpire Marais Erasmus gave a decision in favour of Australia.

“Which part of the codified Preamble (the Spirit of Cricket) was breached by the fielding side? What did the fielding side do in effecting a legitimate dismissal that unfairly impacted the ability of the batter in their attempt not to be dismissed? (Did they run into him or distract him or prevent him making good his ground?) Should a batter be immune from dismissal as per the Laws by simply being negligent (and leaving his ground too early)? Did England retire Ben Duckett when they disagreed with the (Mitchell) Starc catch decision as per the Laws and umpires’ decision?” Taufel said.

Australia went on to win the Test by 43 runs and heads to the third Test in Headingley, starting on Thursday, with a 2-0 lead.