England captain Jos Buttler says he did not appeal for Matthew Wade to be given out for obstructing the field because it was "a risky one to go for so early in the trip".
In a dramatic first T20I against Australia in Perth, Wade appeared to deliberately prevent Mark Wood from going for a caught and bowled chance. After top edging a vicious bouncer into his helmet and up in the air, Wade took a few steps down the pitch as he tried to work out where the ball was.
Wade then looked directly at Wood, who was running to try and claim the catch, before sticking his left arm out and impeding the England quick. His actions prevented Wood from potentially taking the catch and appeared to be deliberate, with Wade looking at Wood as he stuck his arm out.
The 34-year-old could have been given out obstructing the field, with Law 37.1 stating: "Either batter is out Obstructing the field if ... he/she wilfully attempts to obstruct or distract the fielding side by word or action."
However, England opted not to appeal, with Buttler explaining after the match: "I wasn't sure what happened. They asked if I wanted to appeal, and I thought, 'We're here for a long time in Australia. It would be a risky one to go for so early in the trip.'"
Marcus Stoinis, meanwhile, defended Wade, saying: "There's a lot that goes on there when you get hit in the head and you're running around. You don't know where the ball is... it is chaos."
Luckily for England, the decision not to appeal did not backfire, with Wood getting David Warner caught on the boundary for 73 later that over and Sam Curran dismissing Wade for 21 in the final over.
England ultimately won the match by eight runs to go 1-0 up in the series ahead of the T20 World Cup. The wicket of Wade was particularly crucial as he has developed into a stunning finisher for Australia in T20 cricket.
His dismissal in this match was the first time Wade has been out in a T20I run chase since August 2021 and also the first time Australia have lost chasing in a T20I since August 2021.
