Jonny Bairstow stumping controversy: Sparks fly as spirit of cricket debate is reignited

The spirit of cricket debate came to the fore again as England wicketkeeper-batter Jonny Bairstow was ‘stumped’ on Day 5 of the Lord’s Test on Sunday in the ongoing Ashes series.

Chasing 371, England were 193/5 in the 52nd over bowled by Cameron Green. Bairstow left the last ball of the over alone and ambled out of his crease almost immediately. Seeing this, Alex Carey threw down the stumps and appealed for his wicket. The third umpire ruled Bairstow out.

Even as the decision was referred upstairs, there was a discussion between Bairstow, England captain Ben Stokes (non-striker), and the Australian fielders over the incident, but the visitors refused to withdraw the appeal. In the end, Bairstow stormed off the field as the third umpire delivered his verdict.

The incident has reignited the rules vs spirit of cricket discussion, with opinions divided yet again. Here’s a lowdown of the entire controversy surrounding Bairstow.

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The dead ball rule

The main reason behind Bairstow being adjudged out by the third umpire was that the ball wasn’t considered ‘dead’ when the England batter walked out of his crease.

Normally, a batter indicates to the keeper that he is stepping out of his crease after which the ball is considered dead. However, in this instance, Bairstow strolled out of his crease almost immediately after leaving a delivery from Green.

Giving an explanation over the dismissal and the ‘dead ball’ rule, the ICC issued a clarification, referring to the pertinent law and said:

"According to law 20.1.2 of the MCC's Laws of Cricket, "the ball shall be considered to be dead when it is clear to the bowler’s end umpire that the fielding side and both batters at the wicket have ceased to regard it as in play."

The ICC report added:

“Carey, having watched Bairstow make it a habit of walking outside the crease early, used the chance to throw down the stumps and find the England right-hander out of his ground. In this case, the fielding side clearly considered the ball to still be in play and hence it wasn't a dead ball.”

Bairstow’s dismissal left England in trouble at 193/6 in their chase of 371.

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What happened next? Fired-up Stokes and heated exchange in Long Room

Things boiled over after Bairstow’s exit and Stokes was clearly fired up. He launched a brutal assault on Australian bowlers and raced to a brilliant hundred with a flurry of big hits. There was more controversy as players headed to lunch, with England on 243/6.

Australian players were booed by members in the iconic Lord’s Long Room as they proceeded for lunch on Day 5. Clearly unhappy with the rogue behavior of some members, Aussie opener Usman Khawaja engaged in a heated conversation with some and had to be pulled back by security.

Speaking to Channel 9 later, Khawaja expressed disappointment at the conduct of some members in the Long Room.

He commented:

"It was really disappointing. Lord's is one of my favourite places to come. There's always respect shown at Lord's, particularly in the Members Pavilion in the Long Room, but there wasn't today. It was very disappointing... Some of the stuff that was coming out of the members' mouths is really disappointing and I wasn't just going to stand by and cop it. So I just talked to a few of them."

Taking strict action, the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) suspended three members over the incident and also apologized “unreservedly”.

Releasing an official statement, MCC said:

“They [suspended members] will not be permitted back to Lord’s whilst the investigation takes place. We maintain that the behavior of a small number of members was completely unacceptable and whilst there was no suggestion by [Australia captain] Pat Cummins in the post-match press conference that there was any physical altercation, it remains wholly unacceptable to behave in such a way, which goes against the values of the club.”

The Long Room exchange did not seem to affect Australian players as they bowled out for England for 327. Stokes was dismissed for a magnificent 155 by Josh Hazlewood after which the tail did not offer much resistance.

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Cummins-Stokes differ over Bairstow stumping

On somewhat expected lines, Australian captain Pat Cummins and England skipper Stokes shared contrasting views on Bairstow’s dismissal. Cummins maintained that Carey did what was within the laws of the game.

He said at the post-match presentation:

"I think (Alex) Carey saw it happen a few balls previous. There was no pause. Catch it, straight away, have a throw at the stumps. I thought it was totally fair play. That's how the rule is. I know some people might disagree. Just like the catch yesterday, the rule is there. That's how I saw it."

On the other hand, Stokes conceded that Bairstow was out as per the rules of the game, but added that he wouldn’t want to win a game in that manner.

The England captain opined:

"I am not disputing the fact it is out because it is out. If the shoe was on the other foot I would have put more pressure on the umpires and asked whether they had called over and had a deep think about the whole spirit of the game and would I want to do something like that."

Stokes added:

"For Australia, it was the match-winning moment. Would I want to win a game in that manner? The answer for me is no."

Australia and England will resume their Ashes 2023 battle when they face each other at Headingley in Leeds, starting Thursday, July 6.