Graeme Smith was given not out LBW by umpire Steve Davis in Perth when the ball was clearly hitting middle stump. Smith scored 108 and South Africa won the match and the series 2-1 — Australia's first home series defeat in 16 years.
The 2008-09 South Africa tour of Australia was one of the most anticipated series of that era. South Africa had emerged as genuine world-beaters under Graeme Smith, with a batting lineup featuring AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis and JP Duminy complementing their formidable fast-bowling attack led by Dale Steyn.
Australia were dealing with a transition period following the retirements of Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath. While they still had Ponting, Hussey, and a strong batting order, their bowling attack was not the fearsome unit of the early 2000s. The series was seen as a genuine contest — perhaps the strongest challenge to Australian home dominance in years.
The first two Tests had split 1-1, setting up a winner-takes-all decider at the WACA in Perth. The ground — with its famous pace and bounce — was traditionally regarded as Australian home turf. South Africa had never won a Test match at the WACA. It was a ground that should have favoured Australia.
The Perth Test was a tightly contested affair, with both teams creating chances. Steyn and Morkel were generating genuine pace and movement on the WACA surface, while Australia's bowlers were finding life in the pitch conditions too.
South Africa's first innings was the pivotal passage of play. Graeme Smith, the captain and the player most capable of setting up a big total, came in early and faced Australia's bowlers on a pitch that offered help. Mitchell Johnson and Brett Lee were building pressure.
The LBW appeal that should have dismissed Smith came when he was in the early stages of his innings — around the 15-run mark. An Australian delivery struck him on the pad with Smith's bat clearly behind the line. Umpire Steve Davis shook his head. The Australian fielders exchanged glances of disbelief. Replays showed the ball was hitting middle stump squarely.
The decisive umpiring moment came during South Africa's first innings at the WACA. An Australian bowler — the delivery was part of a sustained seam bowling spell in Perth conditions — hit Graeme Smith on the pad with a ball that replays showed was tracking onto middle stump. Umpire Steve Davis, standing at the bowler's end, gave it not out.
Australia's players were visibly frustrated. Ball-tracking replays, which were being shown on broadcast, indicated the ball was hitting at least middle stump and potentially leg stump too. By the emerging standards of DRS ball-tracking that was becoming more widely used in broadcasts, this was a decision that would have been overturned under review.
Smith, characteristically, showed no emotion and settled back into his stance. He went on to make the most of his reprieve in a characteristically determined innings of 108. It was a captain's knock that anchored South Africa's first innings total and gave their attack a platform to bowl from.
South Africa went on to win the Perth Test — one of the most significant results in South African cricket history. It was Australia's first home series defeat in 16 years. The last time Australia had lost at home before this was against England in the 1992-93 Ashes.
The scale of the achievement was enormous for South African cricket — and the LBW reprieve was a significant 'what if' in the narrative. Had Smith been given out for 15, Australia might have forced South Africa into a lower total and changed the course of the match.
Graeme Smith hit on the pad early in his innings — umpire Steve Davis gives not out
Replays show the ball tracking onto middle stump — a clear umpiring error by broadcast analysis
Smith settles in and builds his innings, reaching 108 in a captain's knock
South Africa set a competitive total, giving Steyn and Morkel a platform
South Africa win the Perth Test — their first ever win at the WACA
Australia suffer their first home series defeat in 16 years — series goes to South Africa 2-1
Series context
Series level at 1-1 going into the Perth decider
SA first innings
Smith hit on pad early on — umpire Davis gives not out; replays show ball hitting stump
Smith 50
Smith reaches his half century and South Africa gain momentum
Smith 108
Smith completes his century — a defining captain's innings at the WACA
Steyn bowling
South Africa's bowlers exploit the platform set by Smith's batting
Match result
South Africa win at the WACA for the first time — series won 2-1; Australia's 16-year home record ended
“We knew we had him. The ball was hitting middle stump — everyone watching could see that. But the umpire saw it differently.”
“Getting a start in Perth against that attack was everything. Once I was in, I knew I had a hundred in me.”
“This is why DRS has to be mandatory. There is no excuse for the technology to be sitting in the broadcast truck while wrong decisions are made on the field.”
“Winning at the WACA for the first time — that's a moment South African cricket will never forget.”
The aftermath of Australia's series defeat was enormous in domestic cricket terms. The 16-year home series unbeaten record was the bedrock of Australian cricket's dominance in the post-Waugh era. Its ending against South Africa sent shockwaves through Cricket Australia.
Post-match analysis in Australia focused heavily on the umpiring decision. The LBW reprieve for Smith was specifically cited in media analysis as a turning point. Cricket Australia raised the issue of DRS use in the series retrospectively, noting that ball-tracking available on broadcast had indicated errors that a formal referral system could have corrected.
Graeme Smith was magnanimous in victory, praising Australia's competitive spirit while acknowledging the historic significance of the win. Dale Steyn's performance with the ball received most of the attention, but Smith's century was identified as the innings that made the win possible.
Significant umpiring error that allowed South Africa's captain to score a century that anchored the decisive Test in a series South Africa won 2-1 — ending Australia's 16-year unbeaten home record. A clear example of the cost of not using available ball-tracking technology.
The 2008-09 South Africa series victory in Australia is considered one of the landmark results in South African cricket history. It established their credentials as the world's best Test team — a status they would eventually formalise when they rose to the top of the ICC Test rankings.
The LBW reprieve for Smith is a minor footnote in the larger story of South African excellence, but it matters because it came in a decider and potentially changed the balance of the Perth Test. It added to the chorus of evidence being gathered to support mandatory DRS adoption in international cricket.
Australia vs New Zealand
1 February 1981
Greg Chappell instructed his brother Trevor to bowl the last ball underarm along the ground to prevent New Zealand from hitting a six to tie the match.
Australia vs India
7 February 1981
Sunil Gavaskar was given out LBW to Dennis Lillee off a ball that clearly hit his bat first. He was so furious he tried to take his batting partner Chetan Chauhan off the field with him.
Australia vs India
2-6 January 2008
One of the most controversial Tests ever — terrible umpiring decisions, racial abuse allegations, and India threatening to abandon the tour.