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Last Updated:June 13, 2025, 11:16 is

David Bedingham admits he ‘panicked’ after nearly finding himself amid a major controversy after trying to remove the ball from the flap of his pad on Day 2 at Lord’s.

South African middle-order batter David Bedingham admitted he had ‘panicked’ during a controversial ball-handling moment on Day 2 of the ICC World Test Championship final at Lord’s.

The unusual incident occurred at the stroke of lunch as Bedingham played Australian allrounder Beau Webster and inside-edged the ball into the flap on his pad. Australian wicketkeeper Alex Carey smelled an opportunity and tried to grab hold of the ball for a potential caught behind appeal before it fell on the turf.

Overpowered by reflexes, Bedingham reached down to his knee and threw the ball to the ground. On-field umpires Richard Illingworth and Chris Gaffaney called the ball dead, but the Proteas right-hander’s movements near the stumps threatened to trigger another contentious spirit of the cricket debate at Lord’s after the infamous Jonny Bairstow-Alex Carey stumping two years back.

“Yeah, I think I panicked big time. Because Carey was standing up, he was quite close. The umpires said, regardless, it was a dead ball. But I think the way I picked up the ball and dropped it came across a bit dodgy,” said Bedingham at stumps, as quoted by Sponne.

Australian skipper Pat Cummins played down the controversy and insisted he would’ve taken the appeal back even if the umpires had not deemed the delivery from Webster dead.

“I’m just glad they withdrew the appeal, because there [would have been] more controversy and that type of stuff,” Bedingham added. “I’m glad nothing happened out of it. The slip cordon just told me, ‘Don’t panic, just leave it…’ but at the moment, I think I panicked big-time.”

According to the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC’)s Law 20.1.1 about dead balls, a delivery is considered dead when: “Whether played or not it becomes trapped between the bat and person of a batter or between items of his/her clothing or equipment, [or] lodges in the clothing or equipment of a batter or the clothing of an umpire.”

Bedingham, who was batting on 31 at the time, could only reach 45 before he was eventually dismissed as his wicket fastened South Africa’s first-innings downfall. The Proteas were all out for 138 with Bedingham top-scoring, handing Australia an influential lead of 74 runs.

Despite South Africa’s skilful attack leading a fightback and reducing the defending champions to 144/8 by stumps, Temba Bavuma’s men are staring at a target of 218-plus already on the tricky surface.

Cricketnext Staff

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