5 instances when technology hindered play in cricket

#2 Live microphone

Virat Kohli makes a gesture as Steve Smith is dismissed after being on live mic.

When Steve Smith was at the crease in the India-Australia match, at one point he was talking to Channel Nine's reporters via a live mic.

Just two balls after Smith described a shot by Aaron Finch, he lost his wicket on a careless shot.

Smith later tried to play down the distraction saying:"It [the commentary] was on at the time, but for me it was just a bad shot. I tried to chip one over the top for two rather than trying to hit him for four or six. It was my fault and I got to do better next time," he said.

One can debate if the distraction proved to be fatal for his wicket or if it had no bearing, but it is conclusive that mistakes are bound to happen when attention is divided.

A Channel 9 commentator, Nicholas, said "Steve Smith is out, and he's unable to talk us through that. Understandably."

The addition of a microphone on a player during the course of a match may add some entertainment value, but it unquestionably comes at the expense of peak performance from the player, as was demonstrated by Steve Smith.