Ashes 2023: The Hotspot, the Snicko, and the Edge That Wasn't

The 2023 Ashes series — England's Bazball era colliding with Australia's world-champion Test side — was always going to produce contentious cricket. What nobody predicted was that the technology designed to resolve umpiring disputes would itself become a source of conflict.

Hotspot and Snicko — the two edge-detection technologies used in DRS — repeatedly produced contradictory evidence in the same review. Hotspot would show no heat signature (suggesting no contact between ball and bat), while Snicko would show a clear spike in audio (suggesting contact). The ICC's DRS protocols require umpires to look at all available evidence holistically, but when the two key technologies actively contradicted each other, the resulting decisions felt arbitrary.

The most contentious case came in the second Test at Lord's, where an Australian edge-detection DRS review produced Hotspot and Snicko readings that commentators described as "completely contradictory." The third umpire, bound by protocol, chose to stand by the on-field not-out decision given the uncertainty — which was correct process but deeply unsatisfying for a technology meant to resolve rather than compound uncertainty.

England's captain Ben Stokes was vocal about the inconsistency. Australia's Pat Cummins, more measured publicly, privately expressed frustration about the reliability of technology that played a central role in Test cricket's most high-profile series.

The Ashes controversy triggered the most detailed ICC review of DRS edge-detection technology in years, with Hotspot's manufacturer specifically questioned about the conditions under which the thermal imaging system produces reliable readings (it performs less well in bright sunlight and on thick bat edges).

“The technology is supposed to help us get more decisions right. When Hotspot says no and Snicko says yes in the same review, that doesn't help anyone. Something needs to change.”

“We trust the process. The process is the best we have. But I don't think anyone would disagree that there are aspects that need improvement.”

The ICC's review of Hotspot technology following the 2023 Ashes was the most thorough since DRS's introduction. Manufacturers were required to demonstrate performance standards in different weather conditions, and protocols for contradictory evidence between technologies were reviewed and clarified.