Watch: Babar Azam left red-faced after Steve Smith incident ends in embarrassing dismissal in Big Bash League

Babar Azam was not pleased with Steve Smith's decision to deny a single on the last ball of the 11th over, and his frustration was evident after he was dismissed on the very next ball he faced in the 13th over. Babar played the last ball of the 11th over towards long-on, but to his surprise, Smith refused the single as he wanted to take the strike in the 12th over. The Sydney Sixers opted for a power surge, which allowed only two fielders outside the circle for the Sydney Thunder. Smith capitalized on this opportunity, scoring 32 runs in the over bowled by Ryan Hadley.

On the final ball of the over, Smith and Babar ran two runs, leading to Babar facing the first ball of the 13th over. Unfortunately for the right-handed batsman, he was bowled by Nathan McAndrew on the very first ball, ending his innings at 47 runs off 39 balls. His anger was palpable as he struck the boundary rope cushion with his bat while heading back to the pavilion.

"Wasn't happy, Babar." 

Drama in the middle of the SCG after Steve Smith knocked back a run from Babar Azam, so he could take strike during the Power Surge. #BBL15 pic.twitter.com/rTh0RXE0A5

— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) January 16, 2026

In response to the decision to take the surge after the 11th over, Smith commented:  "Yeah, so we spoke at the 10-over mark and they said, take the Surge straight away. I was like, no, give it one over. I want to hit to the short boundary and I don't want to screw up the first over. And I looked to try and get 30 off that over. I think we got 32."

"So it's a good result. I'm not sure Babar was too happy with me knocking back that single though. (on their next game vs Heat) Yeah, I think it's another must-win for us. So yeah, huge game. Looking forward to getting out there and yeah, hopefully we can put on another show," he added.

The Sixers started their chase for the target of 190 with a fantastic opening partnership, as Smith and Babar put together 141 runs for the first wicket. However, they lost wickets rapidly after Babar's dismissal, finding themselves 5 down for 169 at one point. Lachlan Shaw and Jack Edwards then stepped up, adding 21 runs for the sixth wicket to secure a victory for the Sixers, who now have 5 wins from nine matches.

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