Patiala, December 20: With the introduction of sophisticated electronic gadgets in cricket officiating at the behest of International Cricket Council (ICC), the Third Umpire is nothing but a humiliation for the mandarins in suits, says Dronacharya awardee octogenarian coach Desh Prem Azad, who produced great players like Kapil Dev.
”The Umpires are human beings. They will commit mistakes since they take just a few seconds to uphold or negate an appeal from the bowler and fielders, whereas when a decision is referred to the Third Umpire in the balcony, he takes a few minutes, looking at the replay again and again, to give his verdict through the use of electronic devices which, many times, goes against the decision of the Umpire in the middle.
This could be pretty humiliating for any Umpire as he is booed and jeered by thousands of spectators in the stadium and millions of cricket enthusiasts glued to TV sets around the world making grimaces,” Azad laments.
”Worst of all, besides No Ball, Run Outs, Catches, Fours and Sixes, the LBW decision is also now referred to the Third Umpire during the Test matches, ODIs and T-Twenty. The Decision Review System (DRS) is nauseating,” he said.
”If the Third Umpire has to decide about almost every decision, what is the role of the Umpires in the Middle?,” Azad questions.
The former Australian cricket coach John Buchanan has rightly lambasted the ICC when he said,”This system is making people look foolish. It was supposed to reduce tension between umpires and players but it has not done that at all.” The ICC was making a mockery of Umpiring and insulting the Umpires holding the highest reputation and integrity,” says Azad, adding ”The use of technology has reduced world class Umpires to nought”.
The ICC should give a thought on how to protect the dignity and reputation of the Umpires who are meticulously chosen to serve on the panel of ICC. Else, the Umpires would lose confidence, playing second fiddle to the Third Umpire whose authority to adjudicate would make a mockery of officiating, he said.
——Agencies