Ever heard that little "tick" during a cricket match and wondered how umpires detect it?

Enter the "Snick-O-Meter", a game-changing tech tool invented in the 1990s by Allan Plaskett.

This device picks up sound frequencies through a microphone near the stumps, filters out crowd noise, and isolates sounds made by the ball hitting the bat or pad. These sounds are then converted into waveforms via an oscilloscope. If there's a spike on the graph, it usually means contact-helping third umpires make critical decisions.

Its cooler cousin? Ultra-Edge, which adds video and advanced sound syncing to make the judgment even more accurate. While not perfect, these tools have made cricket more transparent and fair. Next time you're watching a review, flex your knowledge and explain how Snick-O-Meter works!

Wanna sound smart with your cricket gang? Now you totally can.