Sachin Tendulkar asks ICC to “thoroughly look” into Umpire’s Call after narrow escape for Australian batsmen
Sachin Tendulkar once again expressed his discontent with the contentious “Umpire’s Call” in the Decision Review System. The legendary batsman suggested that the reason players opt for a review is that they aren’t happy with the on-field umpire’s decision, as he wrote that the DRS in its current format isn’t serving its intended purpose.
Notably, the Indian cricket team has seen multiple DRS decisions ruled against it due the “Umpire’s Call” during the Boxing Day Test.
Sachin Tendulkar spoke in the context of the India vs Australia series, as he tweeted that the ICC should “thoroughly look” into the system.
The 2nd India vs Australia Test has seen the visitors lose out on LBW decisions three times due to “Umpire’s Call”. Tim Paine, Marnus Labuschagne and Joe Burns were saved by the umpire's call. With the on-field decision not-out, all the three Australian batsmen got lifelines despite the ball hitting the stumps in each case.
Sachin Tendulkar criticised “Umpire’s Call” in the past also
This is not the first time Sachin Tendulkar has talked about his dissatisfaction with the current format of the Decision Review System.
According to the rules, “Umpire’s Call” is used to give the benefit of doubt to the on-field umpire in case of inconclusive technological evidence. Thus, in instances where less than 50% of the ball is hitting the stumps, excluding the bails, as per the ball-tracking technology, the final decision is the same as the one given by the on-field umpire.
Earlier this year, Sachin Tendulkar while speaking to Brian Lara on video chat had argued that the DRS system is flawed. Sachin Tendulkar had suggested that even if the ball is marginally hitting the stumps, the decision should be out.
“One thing I don’t agree with, with the ICC, is the DRS they’ve been using for quite some time. It is the LBW decision where more than 50% of the ball must be hitting the stumps for the on-field decision to be overturned. The only reason they (the batsman or the bowler) have gone upstairs is because they are unhappy with the on-field decision, so when the decision goes to the third umpire, let the technology take over; just like in Tennis – it’s either in or out, there’s nothing in between”