Kane Williamson’s Test match might have been uneventful so far, dismissed for 13 and 1 to continue his struggles in England, but there was at least drama in the end of his second innings, with two DRS reviews in two balls reaching surprising conclusions to see him reprieved and then dismissed.

In the midst of an excellent spell, Ollie Robinson had Williamson in his sights, nipping the second ball of the 25th over back in to rap the New Zealand captain on the pads. Umpire Richard Kettleborough raised the finger, and Williamson belatedly, and seemingly reluctantly, reviewed.

It was surprising, therefore, that UltraEdge showed a spike as the ball passed Williamson’s bat, suggesting he had hit it, with the on-field decision overturned. “I’m not sure Williamson knew he hit it, because he was reviewing for height maybe,” said Nasser Hussain on Sky Sports Cricket commentary.

“I’m with you Nass,” agreed former New Zealand quick Simon Doull. “The amount of time that it took Williamson to review tells me that he wasn’t sure he hit it.”

Williamson’s relief wouldn’t last long, with another loud lbw appeal following the very next ball. On first glance, this had less going for it than the first, striking the No.3 high and in line with leg-stump. Joe Root hadn’t covered himself in glory with his use of DRS in the innings so far, burning two early on with some speculative shouts, but chose to go upstairs anyway.

Be honest, what did you think of this review at the time? 😅

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It came again as something of a shock to show the ball hitting just enough of the top of leg-stump to force Kettleborough to overturn his decision once more. By this point the match official looked a little exasperated, having made two seemingly reasonable decisions only for each to be shown to be wrong.

The upshot was that the Blackcaps had to make do without their captain, who now averages just 26.10 in Tests played in England.

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