The International Cricket Council umpires manager Simon Taufel spoke out against the latest cricket cheating allegations, saying that not one player has failed a bat inspection in recent years just days after Channel Nine revealed silicone tape had been used by English players to cheat Hot Spot technology.
Speaking via a live chat on News Corp Australia websites, Taufel insisted that silicone tape had not been discovered in three years’ worth of random bat inspections.
“We’ve been doing random bat inspections for three years and to date we haven’t found one that hasn’t complied with width and covering,” Taufel said. “We do, from time to time see breaches of logos and advertising.
“If we did discover that a player was undertaking such actions they would be liable for a breach of the code of conduct and also as a matter of fact, prior to every series and match the fourth umpire does a random bat inspection.
Taufel went on to conclude that inspections between umpires cover roughly six players per side, but often deals with logo and sponsorship restrictions placed on bats.
The comments come amidst a couple of damning suggestions over Hot Spot’s ability to be manipulated.
ICC confirmed Thursday that Hot Spot inventor Warren Brennan had contacted the organising body to inform them that certain materials may be able to mask nicks normally detected by thermal imaging systems.
“He made us aware of that,” ICC general manager Geoff Allardice said. “On Tuesday, he did some testing and informed us of that. He also advised us that he was intending to make a media statement. We talked about the timing of that. It’s his company, his product, he’s free to say whatever he likes in the media. We were expecting to see something either yesterday or today.”
A study by Dr Masood Khan of Perth’s Curtin University revealed also on Thursday that research into Hot Spot’s thermal imaging process determined silicone tape can hide contact between a bat’s edge and the leather ball.
“The chemical composition of silicone tape makes it work as an inhibitor for most radiation,” Dr Khan said. “Its physical characteristics also make it insensitive to minor physical impacts.
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