Controversy erupted at the end of the third day of play between Kent and Northants in the County Championship on Sunday, when nightwatcher Matt Milnes was out bowled before footage emerged suggesting the ball hadn't actually hit the stumps.
Matt Milnes was adjudged bowled even though the ball didn't touch the stumps
Kent were made to follow on in Canterbury after Northants piled on 684-2 declared in their first innings, breaking multiple records in the process as all of their top four scored centuries. The home side capitulated to 178 all out in response, before they lost Zak Crawley early in their second dig.
Sam Northeast and Ben Compton started the recovery job, before the former was dismissed for 69 in the evening session. That left Kent 159-2 in the dying overs of day three, and they sent nightwatcher Milnes out to see off the rest of the day. He lasted six balls before being dismissed by Calvin Harrison.
Facing a ball angled across him, Milnes looked to play the ball into the off-side and was beaten on the under edge of his bat. The bail fell off the off-stump just after the ball had passed Milne's bat, causing the Northants fielders to celebrate. Milnes stood at the crease, staring at the umpire in apparent confusion.
After taking some time to leave the ground, Milnes was replaced by Jaskaran Singh in the middle, and Kent closed the day on 162-3.
However, a video later emerged of the dismissal on social media, and on closer inspection, the ball appeared to miss the stumps altogether after it passed Milnes' bat. The ball looked like it bounced over the stumps, with the gloves of wicketkeeper Lewis Goldsworthy clipping the off-stump bail as he caught the ball, causing the bail to fall.
Match 11, Kent vs Northamptonshire
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Milnes' dismissal stood, however, and he did not bat the following day as rain helped Kent in their cause to secure a draw. They reached 231-5 before rain came in the afternoon session, with play still stopped at the time of writing.
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