Bailey defends Smith, questions Morgan

George Bailey says Eoin Morgan's statement that he would not have appealed the controversial Ben Stokes wicket on Saturday means the England captain would be expected to call back any other player wrongfully given out in the future.

Stokes was given out obstructing the field in Australia’s 64-run win at Lord’s, causing a split in the cricket world as to whether the right decision was made and if Australia should have appealed for the rare dismissal.

Moments after the match concluded, Morgan said he would have withdrawn the appeal if he was in Steve Smith’s position, believing Stokes’s actions were in self-preservation and not deliberately intended to stop the ball from hitting the stumps.

Watch the moment that has the cricket world talking

Bailey says Smith and his teammates had every right to appeal for obstructing the field, adding the Australians wouldn’t have asked the question if they thought the ball thrown by fast bowler Mitchell Starc was going to miss the stumps, or if Stokes hadn’t used his hand to block the shot.

After hearing Morgan’s comments about withdrawing the appeal, Bailey said if the England skipper held that view then he would be expected to call back any player who has been incorrectly given out by the match umpires.

"He's (Morgan) obviously very emotional about it still - and that's fine, he was out there - but we think the ball was going to hit the stumps, he (Stokes) was out of his crease and he put his hand up when the ball wasn't going to hit him anyway," Bailey said.

"I think if the ball was going to go four metres wide (of the stumps), I don't think we would've appealed. 

"It was the fact we thought the ball was going to hit the stumps. And if he didn't put his hand up we'd have known if the ball was going to hit the stumps.

"It's a big call for Eoin to say that (he would have withdrawn the appeal).

"I assume if that's how he feels then any time a batter nicks one onto his pad and gets given out lbw, or gets wrongfully given out caught behind, he'll call them back as well.

"That's his prerogative as captain."

Morgan says he would have withdrawn Stokes appeal

Bailey says when the law – Law 37.2 of the MCC Laws of Cricket – is followed logically, Stokes’s dismissal was a "basic decision".

"I think the correct decision was made. I don't think the ball was going to hit him. I think the ball was going to hit the stumps, and he was out of his crease," Bailey said.

"I don't think there was any need for him to put his hand up to defend himself."

Following the decision, the normally reserved Lord’s crowd filled the air with disapproving boos as Stokes made the long walk back to the home dressing room the two captains continued to debate the outcome out in the middle. 

The heated incident was the first controversial moment in Smith’s tenure as the full-time Australia captain and Bailey – a former ODI and T20 captain of his country – says the young leader handled with situation with aplomb.

"I think the noise from the crowd helps us. In terms of the decision itself, I thought 'Smudger' worked through it really logically," Bailey said.

"I'm 100 per cent sure the discussion in the middle (among the Australian players) was if the ball wasn't going to hit the stumps we wouldn't have appealed."

Smith defends decision to appeal for Stokes wicket

Australia’s opening match of the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup was the last time Bailey skippered his nation, making way for the returning Michael Clarke and not playing for the remainder of the successful campaign.

But if the incident happened on Bailey’s watch, he says the outcome would have been no different.

"I would've done (the same)," he said.

"The crowd got into it, which was great, but once the emotion is taken out of it I'm very comfortable with the fact we thought the ball was going to hit the stumps, he's out of his crease. 

"To give it a different slant, if he'd hit the ball to cover and the throw was from cover and he was that far out of his crease and he put his hand up I think the same thing.

"Something similar did happen to the same bloke in the (Lord's) Test match, didn't it? That (getting back to his crease) might be something he needs to work on."

Highlights: Bailey scores half-century (restrictions reply)

Bailey was referring to Stokes’s run-out in the second innings of the Lord’s Ashes Test last month.

Running to the striker’s end, Stokes failed to slide his bat when approaching the crease, instead jumping over the line to watch on as Mitchell Johnson’s throw from mid-on cannoned into the stumps. 

Replays showed Stokes was over the crease mid-air as Johnson’s throw dislodged the bails, removing the allrounder for a duck as Australia went on to win the Test by 405 runs.

Johnson was the target of excessive booing and taunting from the packed English crowds throughout Australia’s Ashes series loss, but on Saturday it was another Mitchell who was copping the stick in the middle.

Whenever Starc was in close proximity of the ball, loud boos filled the air at the Home of Cricket, but the left-armer silenced the heckling when he bowled the free-swinging Liam Plunkett with the first ball of his final spell to affectively end the match.

Watch: Starc silences Lord's crowd (restrictions reply)

"I think the crowd like to boo a 'Mitch' over here, don't they?" Bailey said.

"They've probably been missing Mitchell Johnson for a couple of weeks. 

"That might wake them up a bit - and the north (of England) haven't had much cricket, so they'll get to see a bit of good cricket as well."

Australia and England travel north to Manchester today for Tuesday’s third one-day international with the tourists holding a 2-0 series lead.