Aussie legend Glenn McGrath claimed third umpire Marias Erasmus handed England an Ashes lifeline as the fourth day of the second Test ended in controversy.
McGrath was seething when Erasmus ruled that Mitchell Starc was not in control of the ball when he claimed a catch to dismiss opener Ben Duckett. An angry Starc also confronted Duckett over a decision that gave the home side a tiny glimmer of hope going into the final day at Lord’s.
McGrath had no doubts that England had got lucky - and even suggested something untoward had taken place. He said: “If that's England taking that catch, that is out!
"England have the best of the conditions and now they are getting the best of the rules. That is the biggest load of rubbish that I've ever seen. If that's not out, every catch I've ever seen taken should not be out. That is a disgrace."
England, set 371 to win after bowling out Australia for 279 in their second innings with a barrage of bouncers, found themselves deep in trouble when Starc and Pat Cummings both struck twice to reduce them to 45-4.
Duckett and skipper Ben Stokes repaired some of the damage with a partnership of 69. But shortly after reaching a 62-ball half-century, Duckett appeared doomed when he ramped a delivery from Cameron Green and Starc celebrated a spectacular catch on the boundary.
But South African Erasmus ruled otherwise and Duckett and Stokes will resume on the fifth morning with England still requiring 257 runs to claim a famous victory and level the series 1-1.
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England batting coach Marcus Trescothick admitted that he also thought Duckett was gone - but insisted that England will not wave the white flag. They have never won at Ashes series after falling 2-0 behind.
Trescothick said: "I thought the catch had been taken cleanly, but I have no idea on the rules. We've seen different ones in this game and different decisions have been given. We needed a little bit of luck, hopefully it's a sign things are changing.
"Whatever happens now, it's going to be an exciting final day. We're still fairly upbeat, we're in a positive unit. We have good days and bad days. You enjoy it on a good day, but you don't get too down on a bad day. You take the rough with the smooth.
"Who knows? They never really got going, they didn't get scoring momentum, they probably wanted 400 or 450, with a lot more time to go. We managed to pick up wickets, restricted the runs, so pretty happy with that.”
Former England captain Michael Vaughan feels England have a chance while Stokes, Duckett and Jonny Bairstow are at the crease. Vaughan said: "Australia will think that it’s all about taking the next two wickets. For me, England’s next two wickets will have to add more than 200 runs to keep the game alive.
"Australia will be mindful that Ben Stokes has done it to them before. His Ashes innings in 2019 is regarded by some as the best innings in the history of Test cricket. He will have to produce something similar if England are going to get close."
