One of the most sought-after firsts during the Ranji Trophy semifinals starting over the weekend will be

The Decision Review System (DRS) will be implemented, albeit with limited tools, in the Ranji Trophy semifinals starting over the weekend and the final later on. It is understood that the teams will be given four referrals per innings and the DRS will not involve either Hot Spot, Snicko or Ball Tracker.

Instead, the third umpire will have a slow-motion camera and a pitch map along with spin vision to assist him. This effectively means lbw decisions that can be reversed are the ones that have been adjudged out despite an inside edge or when the ball has pitched outside the leg-stump or the impact has been outside off-stump. Even close caught-behind decisions may be referred to the third umpire.

“Look, it’s a beginning. We are initiating what we are calling ‘limited DRS’ with an objective to eliminate howlers. I am sure the initiative will help the tournament and the teams a great deal,” Saba Karim, BCCI’s General Manager (Cricket Operations) told The Hindu on Monday.