Unhappy with Paine's dismissal, Wade calls for consistent implementation of DRS
Melbourne: Unhappy with skipper Tim Paine's dismissal in the second innings of the ongoing Boxing Day Test against India here on Monday, Australia's makeshift opener Matthew Wade has called for consistent implementation of the Decision Review System (DRS).
Wade made the statement after Paine was given out, caught behind off Ravindra Jadeja on the third day. The wicketkeeper-batsman was ruled out after the on-field call by Paul Reiffel was overturned by third umpire Paul Wilson.
Paine didn't hide his disappointment over the decision while leaving the field, prompting Wade to compare it with Australia's review of Cheteshwar Pujara on the second day's play on Sunday.
"From what I've seen it looked pretty similar to the first ball of yesterday, the one we actually referred, I think it was off Pujara.
"So from all reports and what I've seen, Snicko showed a very similar thing, one was given out and one was not out. That's the way the cookie crumbles sometimes, but that's what it looked like from where we've been sitting and watching," Wade said at the virtual post-day press conference.
"I heard a noise on the Pujara one, I was at first slip at the time, and his bat was the only thing out there, and then we saw what you guys saw on the ground, which was a small spike. Either way, if it was out or not out, consistency is all you want as a player."
Paine was given out purely based on a Snicko spike as there was no mark on Hot Spot, which is the correct protocol.
But Wade took objection to Pujara's case as then also there was no mark on Hot Spot and a very small spike on Snicko, although the Indian was given a benefit of doubt, suggesting that the toe of his bat had clipped his pad.
Wade, meanwhile, blamed yet another poor show from the home team batsmen as Australia is struggling to save the second Test.
Leading the series 1-0, the home side slumped to 133 for 6 in their second innings to take a lead of two runs on day three with all-rounder Cameron Green (17 not out) and Pat Cummins (15 not out) at the crease.
"We've only got ourselves to blame a little bit there, but they've (India) been pretty much on the mark from the start," Wade, who top-scored for Australia with a defiant 137-ball 40, said.
Wade and Marnus Labuschagne (28 off 49 balls) were the only two Aussie batsmen so far to cross the 20-run mark as the Indian bowlers made merry before Green and Cummins put on a 34-run unbeaten stand for the seventh wicket.
"To be fair we haven't gone deep enough yet to really cash in on tired bowlers late in the day.
"Our intent's to go out and score obviously as a batting group and individually, but they're making it quite challenging at times," Wade said.
"Hard to get going, they're bowling pretty well, pretty straight, making it hard for us to score."
Wade has been performing the duties of an opener in the absence of an injured David Warner, who is out with a groin problem.
"We know how good Davey's (David Warner) been for a very, very long time, so it hurts having a guy out that averages nearly 50 in Test cricket obviously," he said.
"We've done the best we can possibly do and will continue to do the same things when we're asked for it."
Wade feels they still have a chance to go at the Indians if they extend their lead beyond the 100-run mark.
"We will take anything, to be honest. Anything over 100 will be good. It would be really if these two put on a nice partnership together, something we haven't done enough of over this Test match," he said.
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BJP worker’s 16-year-old son allegedly casts eight votes in Uttar Pradesh’s Farrukhabad; Video viral
Lucknow (Farrukhabad): A viral video has surfaced showing a 16-year-old son of a BJP worker allegedly casting eight votes to the saffron party during the ongoing general elections in Uttar Pradesh. The video has sparked controversy, and the opposition has urged for prompt action from the Election Commission of India, reports scroll.in.
The video shared by the Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav on micro-blogging site ‘X’, showed the youngster recording himself while casting multiple times in a series of instances. The incident reportedly took place in Khiri Pamaran village, which falls under the Aliganj Assembly constituency within the Farrukhabad parliamentary seat. Mukesh Rajput, the sitting MP, is the BJP candidate in this constituency. Polling in Farrukhabad occurred on May 13 during the fourth phase of the general election.
In the viral video, the youngster is seen casting eight votes in total, all for the BJP, one by one with different clippings.
The youngster in the video has been identified as Rajan Singh Thakur, confirmed his father, Anil Singh Thakur to the Scroll.in. Anil Singh Thakur is the gram pradhan (village head) of Khiri Pamaran and a member of the BJP.
Anil defending his son told the Scroll that the ‘Video misrepresented his son,’ and claimed that the voting was done when the machine was being tested in some instances and other clipping of him voting on behalf of mentally and physically disabled voters was merged and made into a video.
Despite the Anil's caims, the video has drawn significant criticism. Subhash Chandra Prajapati, the additional district magistrate of Farrukhabad, confirmed to the Scroll that the administration will file a case soon. He mentioned that the returning officer is investigating the matter following a directive from the chief electoral officer in Lucknow.
The opposition has been vocal in its criticism, with Akhilesh Yadav demanding action from the Election Commission. In his social media post, Yadav accused the BJP of undermining the electoral process and described the party's booth committee as a "loot committee." The Congress party also called on the Election Commission to take action, in a ‘X’ post the party wrote, “Dear Election Commission…are you watching..a boy is voting 8-8 times ... .at least wake up now.”
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, took to ‘X’ to express, “Fearing and seeing their defeat, the BJP is attempting to undermine democracy by pressuring government machinery to deny the mandate. The Congress expects all officers performing election duties to remember their constitutional responsibilities despite any pressure from those in power. Otherwise, once the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc government is formed, actions will be taken to ensure that anyone will think ten times before violating their 'Oath to the Constitution'."
Following the video's circulation, Naval Kishor Shakya, the Samajwadi Party candidate in Farrukhabad, filed a complaint with the district election officer. Shakya's complaint alleges that Rajan Singh Thakur cast votes after snatching voter information slips from other voters and that he was assisted by Dinesh Thakur, the local police station's station house officer. Shakya has called for re-polling at the affected polling center.
In a related incident earlier in May, Gujarat Police arrested two BJP workers for allegedly casting bogus votes and live-streaming the act on social media in the Dahod constituency. The Election Commission conducted re-polling at the affected booth following the incident.
The opposition INDIA bloc, including the Congress and the Samajwadi Party, has repeatedly accused the Election Commission of failing to take prompt action against election model code of conduct violations.
अपनी हार सामने देख कर भाजपा जनादेश को झुठलाने के लिए सरकारी तंत्र पर दबाव बना कर लोकतंत्र को लूटना चाहती है।
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 19, 2024
कांग्रेस चुनावी ड्यूटी कर रहे सभी अधिकारियों से यह अपेक्षा करती है कि वो सत्ता के दबाव के सामने अपनी संवैधानिक ज़िम्मेदारी न भूलें।
वरना INDIA की सरकार बनते ही ऐसी… https://t.co/fk4wXL8QZy
