I’m no longer in lock-step with the BCCI on this because I still don’t have much faith in the DRS. It struggles to achieve at least two of the ICC’s prime objectives: arriving at the correct decision and eradicating the howler. So long as there are a finite number of reviews, it can never be guaranteed to achieve those goals. In its current form it’s mostly used to review 50/50 decisions, is occasionally employed as a tactic, and is overused in the interests of self-preservation. Umpiring decisions should never be part of cricket’s tactical battles.
Fifty/fifty decisions always have been and always will be accepted by cricketers. Both batsmen and bowlers know that one day they go for you and on another day they go against you. The players accept those odds. What does cause animosity between players is when a poor decision affects the result of a match. That’s when words are exchanged, resulting in distrust and anger between players on opposing teams.
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If the system had been subjected to a thorough examination before it was implemented, then there should have been a red flag next to players initiating reviews. When cricketers are playing for their living, self-preservation is often the No. 1 priority. As former Australian prime minister Paul Keating remarked: “Always back self-interest because you know it’s a goer.” When the system was first considered, one of the reasons put forward for its introduction was to protect a player’s career from a poor decision. In my time as a player, I never saw a promising career curtailed by a poor decision.
Cricket administrators often fail in their duty to visualize where a law or a playing condition will eventually There was a time when the BCCI distrusted the DRS. In its original form, the DRS smacked of reaching a conclusion that “seemed like a good idea at the time”. The three reviews per innings looked suspiciously like replicating the number used by tennis. The review system for tennis makes sense as all decisions are about a line. It’s simple: is it in or out?
