Cricketer dubbed 'Clicky Ponting' suspended as stats show unusual trend

The club at the centre of the "Clicky Ponting" scandal in English amateur cricket has suspended its player over the matter. Saltburn Cricket Club said Brian Devine had been suspended for the rest of the season after several videos were posted online with claims Devine was clicking his fingers as the ball passed the bat to mimic the sound of an edge. The club has forfeited its next match in the North Yorkshire and South Durham Cricket League. "We are treating this allegation with the utmost seriousness and, as a family-centric club, we are fully cooperating with the league's investigation," a statement read. "We believe that the club acted decisively as soon as the complaint and investigation were made known to us. "The player at the centre of the complaint has been suspended and will not play again for the club this season or in the foreseeable future, pending the outcome of this investigation." Devine is yet to comment on the matter and an investigation into the claims has yet to be completed, with the allegations so far unproven. However, an amateur data analyst on social media platform X said they had trawled all scorecards from Saltburn games, and found wicketkeeper catches dramatically increased when Devine was playing. "Been requested to split it by the matches where Devine (the slip clicker) played, and it's even more stark," X account @maxtempers, which usually posts about British politics, wrote. "39 keeper catches in 13 matches with Devine. 5 keeper catches in 7 without." The post followed an original analysis that found wicketkeeper catches increased four-fold when the keeper involved in the alleged clicking footage was playing, including eight catches in one innings. The record at Test level is seven catches in one innings, shared by five players. "The League has received a formal complaint regarding alleged incidents in a Division Two game on Saturday 25 July, 2026," a league statement read when the controversy came to light "A full investigation has been initiated and until such time as the formal processes are complete, no further comment will be made." Australian cricket podcasters The Grade Cricketer have offered to provide financial support to Devine and Saltburn.