Scott Boland, on the stroke of tea, got one for a little extra bounce off the length and it flew past the shoulder ball of Gill’s blade, only to be scooped inches above the ground by a diving Green, who was positioned in the gully.
Gill scored 18 in an opening stand of 41 and was looking in good touch. As tea time approached, a dejected Indian skipper Rohit Sharma was seen chatting with the on-field umpires while walking back to the pavilion.
Even a TV screengrab of the replay was tweeted by Gill’s official social media handle which showed the ball touching the ground.
It was the second time in the game that Green let out a scream after Ajinkya Rahane’s catch in the first innings. Although replays suggested it was a close call some camera angles suggested the ball was touching the grass.
“They (umpires) could have taken more time. They could have zoomed in. This is not a normal match, it is a WTC Final, More testing could have been done,” senior pacer Mohammed Shami said after the end of the day’s play.
Former Australian coach Justin Langer, however, dubbed Green as an “upright man” who would never claim to have dropped a catch.
The soft signal, which was removed from play before the final, could have gone in India’s favor if the on-field umpires had signaled not-out to the TV umpire. The final call lay with TV umpire Richard Kettleborough, who ruled it a fair catch.
Chants of “cheat chit chit” were heard soon after, and were repeated when Green came out to bowl.
Gill was batting well and his partnership with Rohit Sharma was starting to look dangerous.
Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh, who has been commentating on the game, felt that the replays were inconclusive.
He told PTI, “The replays were inconclusive. He should have zoomed in closer on his fingers before taking the call. It could have cost India dearly in the run chase.”
Commenting on the BBC, Langer realized that Green had huge fingers under the ball when he pulled a one-handed screamer to his left in the gully.
“Fingers were under the ball otherwise it would have come back. If you’re an Indian fan, it’s not out. If you’re an Australian, it’s out. If you’re an England fan, it’s not out. That’s how I see it,” Langer said lightly.
The tall all-rounder had dived to his right to take a stunning catch to dismiss Rahane in the first innings. Rahane scored 89 in his first Test innings in 18 months.
(With inputs from PTI)