Ben Stokes became the latest victim of the controversial Snicko technology after the England captain’s dismissal at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) on Monday, on the second day of the ongoing fifth and final Ashes 2025-26 Test. The incident took place in the 51st over of England’s first innings in the first session of Day 2.

Pitched at good length by Mitchell Starc, the extra bounce forced Stokes to defend from the crease. To the naked eye, the ball appeared to pass closely to the outside edge. The Australian left-arm pacer appealed half-heartedly, while those behind the wickets were excited even though the on-field umpire Chris Gaffaney turned down the host team’s request.

Australian captain Steve Smith went upstairs immediately. The Snicko showed a spike when the ball had passed the outside edge of Stokes’ bat, thus once again calling the accuracy of the technology.

“There is no gap between the bat and the ball, I can see a clear spike,” said third umpire Kumar Dharmasena while announcing to reverse the decision.

Stokes walked out disappointed for an 11-ball duck. “It’s a shake of the head from Ben Stokes. He’s not convinced,” former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist said on-air. “Starc wasn’t overly certain, but it was a good review by the Australians, and it falls in their favour.”

“He (Starc) wasn’t sure but there was noise behind the stumps and it’s written in the book now. Disappointment for England,” added the swashbuckling left-hander.

Why Ben Stokes’ dismissal sparked fresh uproar?

The main issue with Stokes’ dismissal was that the spike was spotted a couple of frames after the ball had passed the England captain’s bat. While there was a faint sound, it was unclear whether the noise came from the bat brushing the pad or from the ball hitting the bat. 

Several fans argued that the noise wasn’t from Stokes’ bat, but rather from something else. Earlier in the series, Australia’s Alex Carey and England’s Jamie Smith were victims of the controversial Snicko technology. Even Starc himself is calling for a ban on the technology.

“Snicko needs to be sacked. That’s the worst technology there is,” Starc had said during the third Ashes 2025-26 Test in Adelaide. Notably, it was the 14th time in Tests that Stokes became a victim of Starc’s bowling.

Joe Root’s 41st hundred helps England

Earlier, overnight batter Joe Root completed his 41st hundred to steer England past the 200-run mark. Having started at an overnight score of 211/3, England lost Harry Brook for 84 to Starc.

Root then stitched a 94-run stand with Jamie Smith (46) for the sixth wicket before Scott Boland dismissed the latter. With the hundred, Root equalled former Australian captain Ricky Ponting in the list of all-time men’s Test centuries. It was Root’s second hundred in the series.

At the time of writing, England were at 367/6 in 88 overs with Root just two runs shy of his 150. Will Jacks was batting at the other end on 22.