A controversial moment on an action-packed first day of the first Australia-India Test at the Adelaide Oval saw the tourists denied a run after the on-field umpire called ‘one short’, only for replays to suggest Virat Kohli had grounded his bat.

The incident happened in the 71st over of India’s first innings, with Kohli judged to have not made his ground at the non-striker’s end when turning to come back for a second.

However, a screenshot posted by 7Cricket, one of the broadcasters for the series, seemingly showed Kohli having made his ground, just. Their coverage includes insight from Simon Taufel, five-time ICC Umpire of the Year, who pointed out how the current playing conditions don’t allow for the TV umpire to intervene even if they do spot an error, and also don’t allow the on-field umpires to refer such a decision upstairs.

"The third umpire might be able to tell the on field umpire that he got that decision wrong, however there is no jurisdiction for the third umpire to get involved here and make the call himself. So if the on field umpire gets it wrong (here) it stands." – Simon Taufel #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/JTJ9D9IAxX

— 7Cricket (@7Cricket) December 17, 2020

“The third umpire might be able to tell the on-field umpire that he got that [short run] decision wrong,” said Taufel. “However there is no jurisdiction for the third umpire to get involved here and make the call himself. So if the on-field umpire gets it wrong it stands.”

The ICC playing conditions allow for umpire reviews only in the case of a select set of instances: run out, stumped, bowled, hit wicket, caught, and obstructing the field dismissals, and no ball and boundary decisions. There may now be calls for that list to be extended to include ‘short run’ calls.

Shane Warne, speaking on Fox Cricket, was stringent in his criticism. “Oh no, come on Bruce. Can India say we want to review that because that’s wrong? Bruce Oxenford has got that wrong,” he said. “C’mon mate. It was that close. You should review that, robbed Virat and India. That’s not good enough.

“That is over the line. Clear as day. That is over the line, so what is he doing? Ridiculous. That’s the pettiness from an umpire that drives me crazy.”

Upon seeing the replay on the big screen, Kohli gestured to the umpires in frustration, with Oxenford also coming into question for his positioning, not directly square on to the crease.

The incident bore similarities to one during the recently concluded Indian Premier League, when ‘one short’ was called against Kings XI Punjab’s Chris Jordan in their game against Delhi Capitals, despite replays showing the England quick had made his ground. That game ended up tied, with Kings XI Punjab losing the super over. It remains to be seen whether the Adelaide Test is decided by a similarly slim margin.