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The West Indies vs New Zealand first ODI at the Providence Stadium in Guyana ended with a bit of controversy, as some of the cricket fans believed Keacy Carty narrowly escaped a bit-wicket dismissal, and New Zealand missed a well-deserved wicket, which could have shifted the momentum of the match.
A well-composed West Indies won the ODI match against New Zealand, chasing a target of 268. Keacy Carty was the main man who guided the home team to a clinical win.
Umpire's controversial call in the West Indies vs New Zealand 1st ODI
In the mid-phase of the run chase, the right-handed batter was very close to losing his wicket, as his bat hit the stumps to dislodge the bails. The umpires went upstairs for rechecking whether it was a hit wicket. After watching the incident multiple times on the screen, third umpire Ahsan Raza ruled out the hit wicket appeal.
Should the Kiwis feel hard done by with this Hit Wicket being called Not Out?! pic.twitter.com/XlTNEw5KPq
— The ACC (@TheACCnz) July 12, 2026
The incident, which at first looked like a clear example of hit wicket, went viral on social media platforms. Was it a hit wicket or was it the third umpire who took the right call? The incident took place on the second ball of the 35th over when Keacy Carty took off the New Zealand seamer Jacob Duffy for the maximum over the deep backward square leg area.
While the ball cleared the rope clearly, the batter found his bat had dismantled the bails with a gentle push. After making contact with the ball, the bat was in motion. At that moment, Keacy Carty was batting on 64, and West Indies was at 170/2 after 34 overs.
Keacy Carty was the main man behind West Indies' win over New Zealand
West Indies won the match by 7 wickets and 7 balls to spare, with Carty returning with 97 off 112. If the television umpire had signalled in favor of a hit wicket, then the scenario of the match could have been different.
Why did the umpire not signal it for a hit wicket even after the bails fell because of the bat?
"35.1.1 The striker is out Hit wicket if, after the bowler has entered the delivery stride and while the ball is in play," MCC says in their rule to describe when a batter will be declared out for hitting the stumps with the bat.
Why did the umpire say it was not out?
"While the ball is in play" is the must-read part of the rule. The third umpire did not nod for a hit wicket in the West Indies vs New Zealand ODI, as the ball was already out of play.
Keacy Carty's bat hit the stumps after the ball cleared the ropes. After the match, at the presentation ceremony, neither of the captains of the teams nor the batter himself, who was named the Player of the Match, mentioned the instance, as it might have looked controversial to some of the cricket fans who watched the match on screen, but not to the players who were on the ground at that moment.
