Umpires add high drama to game

GOOD on the India Cricket Board.

Their refusal not to use the technology of the DRS (decision review system) during their team's test series with Australia is a breath of fresh air.

Well, at least it is for those of us who believe the spirit and excitement of the game is being constantly eroded by those intent on taking human error out of the decision-making process.

What the latter fail to understand is that for years immemorial, test cricket sustained a decent following because the umpires were pretty much a law unto themselves.

Seconds always seemed like minutes as a bowler and his fielders yelled themselves hoarse as they sought a leg-before-wicket or caught-behind decision and the umpire decided either to raise his finger or shake his head sideways to indicate he was ruling in the batsman's favour.

High drama indeed and a guarantee that, no matter whether the decision was right or wrong, it would become a talking point in the media and around the pubs for days to come.

A prime example of the old adage, any publicity is good publicity.

By allowing the television cameras to basically decide the batsman's fate, the umpires have practically been made redundant.

They still have the odd job to do, such as count the number of deliveries bowled, but you can see the day when even that will be calculated by some machine.

As it happened, the first day's play in the first test of the series provided a classic illustration of why the post-DRS days were so enthralling.

Twice Australia batsmen were given out caught behind to balls the television replays showed they probably didn't nick.

I say probably because I am still to be convinced that "Snicko" is absolutely accurate but there is no doubt that Australian batsmen Mike Hussey and Ed Cowan could consider themselves unlucky to be trudging back to the pavilion, Hussey after facing just the one ball. You certainly didn't need to be an expert lip reader to understand how Hussey felt about the situation.

The DRS supporters will say, of course, that the fate of Hussey and Cowan actually helps their argument, with Cowan possibly being done out of a test hundred on debut, but for my money they were given out by an umpire who genuinely believed in his own mind they were out, and so rightfully ruled that way.

And, boy, the decisions got people talking, didn't they?

In any case, the Aussies got their own back in their second innings when Ricky Ponting and Hussey were given the benefit of the doubt in lbw appeals which would almost certainly have seen them given out had they gone to referral.

Swings and roundabouts, as they say.

That India will eventually change their minds and allow the DRS system to be used in their matches is practically a given because of the pressure being applied on them by the rest of the world's cricketing nations, but the longer they hold out the better for me.