Crio’s Q: checking the screen

I’ve just watched Haddin take a blinder to dismiss Elgar in Cape Town.

It was great TV for several reasons….

Patto’s brilliant delivery cut back at the lefty. The keeper, instinctively fading to his left, checked to leg and gloved a cracker.

He then nonchalantly lobbed the ball to the ump and gathered as the celebrating team looked to the board to watch a replay.

It’s a recent phenomenon.

I’m not being at all critical. It is natural and, in fact, slightly endearing.

We’ve seen the creep at various sports.

Jockeys checking the infield screen to be sure of a margin.

Footballers making sure their locks are just right on the MCG’s superscreen.

Imagine if such technology had been at the Gabba for the Tied Test!

Any other notable “screenshots” or thoughts on when it may have been instructive in the past?

I’ll kick it off with “Wayne Harmes”!

Comments

  1. Peter Fuller says

    Last Saturday night, there was particularly blatant example during the Melbourne Heart – Victory match. Mate Dugandzic was awarded a corner and delayed taking the kick until he had closely examined the preceding play as it was replayed on the screen just above the corner flag. This was during a period when Heart were laying siege to the Victory goal with Victory playing one man short (unjustly in the view of this Heart fan). It wasn’t clear whether Mate wanted to examine “how that missed”, confirm that the ref’s call was correct, or admire his contribution to a near miss.
    I disapprove when it affects the continuity of play, which obviously doesn’t apply in the cricket or racing examples you mention, Crio.
    Mate has form, using time-wasting tactics; he goes down and stays down especially late in
    matches. I find soccer refs far too tolerant of such tactics, then they will whip out a yellow card during injury time, at trivial time-wasting infractions.

  2. Luke Reynolds says

    Was interesting on Sunday night to see a shot of SK Warne nodding off sitting amongst the Australian team who were laughing at him, followed by the camera showing Michael Clarke, who was out at the crease, smiling after seeing it on the scoreboard. I wondered if it would result in a lapse of concentration and his possible dismissal. It obviously didn’t.

    Spot on Peter, Dugandzic has done that in his stints at both clubs.

  3. Lke Luke i was intrigued by Warney having a snooze. I ‘d like to have seen the final caught behind in our one run defeat at hands of the Windies, during the Adelaide Oval test in 1992-93 put up on the big screen for review. We coulda, shouda,won by one wicklet, intsead a one run defeat..

    Glen!

  4. I’ve seen footballers checking their grooming on the MCG screen and jockeys confirming the margin at MV.

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