….threaten to go down the drain!
I’m really disappointed that people are just foul-mouthing the referral system!
It really is the only way that test cricket can be made more competitive.
As an example, let’s rewind back about 13 months to Sydney.
Ishant Sharma bowls to Symmo.
He gets a nick.
The sound reverberated on my plate.
Bucknor’s ear didn’t catch it.
India wave ‘bye bye’ to their chances of winning the test.
If the referral system had been there, Ishant could’ve asked for a referral. The 3rd ump would’ve said it was out and the series wouldn’t have generated as much controversy as it did.
Likewise, there are so many cases of bowlers gaining the brunt of poor decisions by umps. Test matches drift away even more when bowlers find everything going against them.
It worked like a charm during the India-Sri Lanka test series (when it made its debut).
I think there are a couple of grey areas that need to be tinkered if the system is to be successful:
1. Let the 3rd ump make the decision rather than explaining the situation to the on-field ump. It really does complicate manners. It’s like telling a blind person that he has to look for the board which says ‘Wall St.’
2. Allow the 3rd ump to use all the technology available. He’d then be able to make a decision which everyone would be happy with.
In addition, I don’t think we should be listening to whatHarmison says about the referral, as he isn’t really the best person out there to give a judgement on anything at all!
Off Cutter 