Australian, The – There will be nowhere to hide for the Australian cricket team this summer, with on-field banter to be broadcast unfiltered into lounge rooms across the country.
Summary
- There will be nowhere to hide for the Australian cricket team this summer, with on-field banter to be broadcast unfiltered into lounge rooms across the country.
- In a major win for viewers, new TV rights holder Fox Sports has declared it will be cranking up the stump mics in its Test and limited-overs coverage and, importantly, it has secured the players’ support to do so.
- Australia famously requested South Africa turn down their stump audio earlier this year in anticipation of the sledging barrage to follow, and when the locals refused, players started plugging rival sponsors in a bid to sabotage the coverage.
- The International Cricket Council has since removed all restrictions on stump mics and left their use up to the discretion of broadcasters.