The Ashes 2025-26 series in Adelaide was plunged into chaos on Day 2 as technical glitches and inconsistent umpiring decisions ignited a fierce debate over the future of the Decision Review System (DRS). The flashpoint occurred during the morning session of the third Test, where a series of contradictory Snicko readings left both teams fuming and prompted a blunt assessment from veteran Australian pacer Mitchell Starc.
Mitchell Starc calls for snicko technology to be ‘Sacked’ after Jamie Smith incident on Day 2 of Adelaide Test
The reliability of “Snickometer” technology reached its breaking point on Thursday after two separate incidents involving England wicketkeeper-batter Jamie Smith exposed deep flaws in the system’s calibration. In the first instance, a sharp short ball from Pat Cummins appeared to brush Smith’s glove before popping up to Usman Khawaja at first slip; however, despite replays showing the glove ripple, Snicko remained entirely flat, leading third umpire Chris Gaffaney to rule it as a helmet-strike. In a baffling reversal of luck just two overs later, Smith was given out caught-behind after attempting a pull shot, even though slow-motion replays showed a visible gap between bat and ball.
Frustrated by a sequence of events that saw a visible glove-impact ignored by the audio graph, Starc was captured on the stump microphone delivering a scathing verdict: “Snicko needs to be sacked. That’s the worst technology there is… they made a mistake the other day and made another today.” His outburst highlighted a growing lack of confidence in the technology, which had already been under fire after a high-profile error on Day 1 that allowed Alex Carey to escape a clear edge and go on to score a match-defining century.
This time, the Snicko graph produced a spike a full frame after the ball had passed the bat, which Gaffaney deemed sufficient evidence to uphold the dismissal. The England camp, led by a visibly fuming captain Ben Stokes, was left in disbelief as they watched their batter trudge off to a decision that defied the naked eye.
Here’s the video:
Nathan Lyon and Pat Cummins dominate as England’s hopes fade
Australia’s vice-like grip on the Ashes tightened significantly on Day 2 in Adelaide as England’s batting lineup crumbled under relentless pressure from a rejuvenated home attack. Resuming at 326/8, Australia added a vital 45 runs to reach a final total of 371, headlined by Starc’s aggressive 54 and Jofra Archer’s spirited 5/53.
England’s response was immediate and disastrous, as they plummeted to 42/3 before lunch, with Nathan Lyon removing Ben Duckett (29) and Ollie Pope (3) in a single historic over to surpass Glenn McGrath on the all-time wickets list. Pat Cummins, returning from injury with figures of 3/54, claimed the prize scalp of Joe Root for just 19, while Harry Brook’s defiant 45 was cut short by a tactical masterstroke from Cameron Green.
A late-order collapse saw the visitors slide from 159/5 to a precarious 168/8 as Scott Boland (2/31) dismantled the tail with surgical precision. Only a gritty, unbeaten 55-run partnership between captain Stokes (45* off 151 balls) and Archer (30*) prevented a complete capitulation, guiding England to 213/8 at stumps. Despite this rearguard action, the tourists remain a massive 158 runs behind with just 2 wickets in hand, facing the daunting reality that Australia needs only a few more sessions to effectively retain the urn.
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