Controversy erupted in the Big Bash League after Sydney Sixers captain Moises Henriques appeared to take a stunning catch - and injure his shoulder - to remove Melbourne Stars opener Tom Rogers.

Controversy erupted in the Big Bash League after Sydney Sixers captain Moises Henriques appeared to take a stunning catch – and injure his shoulder – to remove Melbourne Stars opener Tom Rogers.

With the Stars 0/28 in the fifth over chasing 155 for their first win of the season, Rogers attempted to loft Sixers quick Jackson Bird over Henriques at mid-on – only for the veteran to take a spectacular one-handed pluck at full stretch.

However, as the Sixers celebrated, a third umpire check appeared set to disallow the catch, with Henriques appearing to scrape the ball along the grass as he fell to the ground – in a similar incident to one during the second Ashes Test at Lord’s earlier this year, when Mitchell Starc was denied a catch to remove England’s Ben Duckett after the ball made contact with the turf before he had completed his movement.

However, third umpire Claire Polosak would make a different decision at the SCG, catching everyone off guard by upholding the dismissal and sending a seething Rogers on his way for 20.

Under law 33.3 of the MCC’s rules of cricket, a catch is only complete if the ball doesn’t touch the ground ‘from the time when the ball first comes into contact with a fielder’s person… [until] a fielder obtains complete control over both the ball and his/her own movement’.

“The ball’s definitely hit the deck,” former Australian – and Sixers – great Brett Lee said on Fox Cricket.

The decision quickly led to uproar on social media, with Polosak slammed by cricket commentator Adam White for ‘a really embarrassing oversight’.

Former Australian Test player and Victorian leg-spinner Bryce McGain was even more scathing, saying Polosak’s decision was ‘flat out wrong’ and claiming it jeopardises the integrity of the tournament as a whole.

“Wrong decision by third umpire. Flat out wrong #bbl have to get this stuff right for competition integrity,” McGain wrote.

“Could cost a teams [sic] season, a players [sic] job/role in team.”

Former Victorian wicketkeeper Darren Berry agreed, slamming Polosak for incorrectly adjudicating.

“OMG another mistake 3rd umpire sadly not understanding the rules. Great catch but as the law stands that is Not Out. Sad when the paid officials don’t know the rules,” Berry wrote.

However, former NSW and Australian paceman Trent Copeland saw the controversy a little differently.

Copeland, who now works as an analyst on Channel 7’s cricket coverage, called for the ICC to change its laws and make Henriques’ ‘catch’ legal.

“This rule just HAS to change. Needs to mirror the NFL,” Copeland wrote.

Polosak later spoke to Seven to explain her decision, saying the existence of a ‘soft signal’ in domestic cricket, which has been scrapped in the international game, meant she felt there was a lack of evidence to overturn the on-field call of out.

“Internationally, the ICC have removed the soft signal of out – so we’re still playing that in domestic cricket,” Polosak said.

“As I was looking through the vision… I did not have conclusive evidence to say that there were not fingers under the ball, so we stuck with the original decision of out.”

She found an unlikely ally in Rogers. “I actually think it’s out,” Rogers said after the game.

“Moises controlled it and took it beautifully, but I suppose it’s just a grey area with what’s happened in the other game with Mitch Starc’s one.

“It’s obviously a hard one to be on the rough side of it, but at the end of the day I’ve hit a bad shot and he has taken a nice catch so it probably is out.”

However, Stars coach Peter Moores wasn’t convinced, describing the dismissal as ‘frustrating’.

“We’ve seen two or three examples of it [Henriques’ catch]… bit frustrating on that respect,” Moores told Fox Cricket.

“Should it be given out or not? It’s a great bit of work by Henriques, but what’s happened in the past, I’d have expected him to stay in, actually.”

When asked whether he had received any clarity after seeking an explanation from officials, Moores deadpanned: “Not really.”

Fortunately for the Stars, they would recover from the controversy to secure their first win of the BBL season by four wickets with three balls to spare, after a pair of final-over boundaries from Hilton Cartwright.

Rogers’ dismissal prompted a minor collapse of 4-38, including that of Glenn Maxwell’s dismissal for 12 one ball after he launched Jackson Bird deep over the square-leg boundary.

But Beau Webster and Hilton Cartwright were then able to stabilise the innings, putting on a 56-run stand and getting the margin down to 34 from 22 balls.

And while Webster was caught at long on for 35 trying to take down Sean Abbott, Cartwright was able to get the Stars home with an unbeaten 47.

Earlier, Pakistani spinner Usama Mir had helped set up the win with 3-19 off four overs early in the innings.

His wickets included Henriques when he deceived the Sixers captain and had him stumped, before a quicker ball drew Jordan Silk’s edge later in the over.

James Vince was able to steady the ship for the Sixers, getting through a difficult opening 10 overs before taking charge in the second half of the innings to finish with 83 from 55 balls.

But when he was run out by a Maxwell direct hit, the Stars were able to keep the Sixers to 14 runs from a crucial final two overs of the innings.

with AAP

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