‘You can’t do that’ – Two bowlers ejected from cricket match over little-known rule
A mid-match controversy erupted in the Big Bash as two bowlers were suspended after falling foul of a little-known rule.
The Melbourne Renegades looked to keep their season alive in the final game of the Big Bash regular season as they welcomed the Brisbane Heat to Marvel Stadium in Melbourne.
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But the Renegades' bid for victory took an almighty blow in the 12th over when skipper Will Sutherland was forcibly removed from the bowling attack by umpire Donovan Koch.
The reason why Sutherland had to withdraw from the attack was because he ran over the protected area on the wicket.
The protected area is an imaginary rectangle in the middle of the wicket bowlers must keep away from.
It's deemed a protected area so one team does not unfairly damage the pitch to make it more difficult for the opposition when it is their turn to bat.
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Sutherland was warned by Koch in the opening over regarding running onto the protected area.
But Koch would have no more of it halfway through the Heat's innings.
The controversy sparked a puzzled reaction from former Australian internationals David Warner and Brad Haddin.
"This is outrageous," Warner told Fox Cricket.
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"He wasn't deliberately doing it."
Haddin added: "That's an extraordinary decision in a T20 match, especially they've got to bat second.
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"It's not going to do too much damage to the surface."
Renegades bowling duo Fergus O'Neill and Tom Rogers also copped warnings from Koch for the exact same offence.
Unfortunately for O'Neill, Koch deemed he had overstepped the mark in the 16th over and was subsequently stripped of bowling duties.
However, Warner took a more sympathetic stance regarding Koch's decision.
"So the umpire is saying he can't see," Warner said.
"That one I don't disagree with, if he's been warned before that.
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"He's almost gone on the other side of the stumps. That's straight in the danger zone. You can't do that.
"If you've been warned once, you've got to be very careful."
The Heat set the Renegades a total of 197 to win after finishing their 20 overs with a score of 4/196, with Jack Wood, Matt Renshaw and Tom Alsop all scoring totals of 40 or more.
Despite the lofty target, the Renegades managed to hit the target with two overs to spare.
Their innings looked to be in peril at 2/45 in the fourth over, but Australian white-ball star Jake Fraser-McGurk saved the day.
The 22-year-old blasted a stunning 95, his highest-ever Big Bash knock, to lift the Renegades to victory.
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Fraser-McGurk's sensational innings included eight sixes and five fours as only one of his teammates scored more than 20 runs.
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The Renegades' win spelled the end of Brisbane's season, meaning they could not defend their title.
Unfortunately for the Renegades, their season was also over after the Perth Scorchers beat the Adelaide Strikers later that evening.
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