Michael Neser sparks debate as he juggles the ball OUTSIDE the boundary before completing catch
>
Michael Neser’s remarkable juggling catch in the Big Bash League on Sunday sparked much debate as to whether it was a legitimate layoff or a six.
When Jordan Silk sliced Mark Steketee high toward the extra-coverage limit during the Sydney Sixers’ game against the Brisbane Heat, Neser took the catch and tripped over the rope.
As he did so, he tried to return the ball but only succeeded in deflecting it over the rope, where he was forced to juggle his feet in the air again before receiving the catch down the field of play.
Michael Neser (centre) made a controversial catch in Brisbane’s win over the Sixers
The TV referee checked the dismissal and decided it was out, with Neser’s feet not touching the ground outside the rope when he had the ball in hand.
Neser told 7Cricket: ‘I knew [Matt] Renshaw did it a couple of years ago. He didn’t know if the rules had changed, so I thought I’d give it a try. Fortunately they didn’t change the rules.
The catch sparked much debate over the laws of the game, with many people believing it was a high and not the end of Silk’s 23-ball 41 in the Sixers’ quest for 225.
Neser first made contact with the ball downfield when he tried to prevent it from going out for six
He then tossed it up into the air as he crossed the dividing line to catch it.
He then jumped into the air while juggling the ball up in the air and back down the field.
Before stepping back over the boundary line to finally grab the ball and complete the catch.
‘He wasn’t touching the ball when he touched the ball outside [the boundary rope]’ Adam Gilchrist said on Fox Cricket.
But fellow commentator Mark Howard had a different take on the incident: ‘So you’re telling me you can continue to juggle the entire length of the boundary, do three laps?’
Sydney Thunder star Chris Green echoed Gilchrist’s thoughts.
‘Amazing catch! Great moment in Neser’s game,’ he tweeted.
In a follow-up tweet, he added: ‘[Glenn] Maxwell explained the rule very well in Seven take the catch on the field of play, as long as you are not on the ground when the ball is in your hand over the rope and you fall back on the rope when you complete the catch, then you are out. ‘
Sydney Thunder star Chris Green felt Neser’s catch was perfectly legitimate
He then explained to a fan why he thought the referee was correct in upholding the call.
Under law 19.4.2 under the MCC Cricket Laws:
‘The ball in play shall be considered grounded out of bounds if a fielder, grounded out of bounds as in 19.5, touches the ball.
‘A fielder, after catching the ball in bounds, is penalized beyond bounds while in contact with the ball, before completing the catch.’
Crucially, although Neser made contact with the ball after having jumped over the limit, he was not considered penalized beyond the limit. because his first contact with the ball was in play.
Neser’s catch proved crucial for the Heat, but it sparked a heated debate in the cricket world.
However, many fans didn’t see it that way.
‘Michael neser is at least 2-3m over the rope when he jumps to shoot the ball, he is literally every definition of a six. if we’re doing this players can stand on the rope and throw the ball in,” one viewer tweeted.
“To touch the ball out of bounds with your feet flat on the ground has to be a six,” Craig Cook wrote.
“Sorry it’s a joke rule, as well as signing 20 players to stand behind the ropes and return the ball! That’s a 6,” added Ray Bird.
‘So Neser could stay there for 10 minutes jumping off the ground and throwing the ball up in the air! What a ridiculous interpretation of the rule!!’ wrote Jason Nichol.
‘That’s a 6, both feet were planted outside the boundary line when he put it back into play. There is absolutely no way that should be out there,” Raymond Griffiths said.
‘Anyone who says that’s out of the question is absolutely crazy. There is nothing that makes me change my mind that it is a six. As soon as the fielder makes contact with the ground out of bounds, they are out of the field of play. There is a big difference between jumping from within the limit”, argued Tim Davies.
Brisbane won a 15-run thriller after Josh Brown stole the show with dizzying innings to score 62 from just 23 balls in the Heat’s 5-224.
The Sixers made a brave response in their quest for a BBL record run, but fell just short of reaching the final installment of 209.
Josh Brown crushed 62 in just 23 deliveries as the Brisbane Heat went 5-224 on Sunday
The Heat needed something special to kick off their season and Brown provided it in front of 23,689 fans while using a bat he made himself.
He hit his fifty in just 19 deliveries, the fifth-quickest in Heat history in just his second BBL game and batted for a strike rate of 269.57, clearing the boundary six times with a variety of brilliant hits.
Brown’s exciting innings were matched by Nathan McSweeney, who joined the 29-year-old on the squad for the game against the Sixers.
McSweeney looted 84 runs off 51 balls before running out.