Hyderabad: India’s good win over England in the fourth T20 is overshadowed by two controversial calls and both times the hosts suffered under the third referee.
Indian captain Virat Kohli did not hide his disappointment during the post – match interview by saying that Suryakumar Yadav and Washington Sundar were taken out, despite undecided repetitions. Both leave due to the ‘soft signal’ of the standing referees, and it is interesting that each incident took place deep in the outfield.
‘If it’s a half and a half effort and the fielder doubts, I do not think the referee can see it clearly. ‘Why can’t there be an’ I do not know ‘call from the referee? Why should it be conclusive? These things can sometimes really change the course of an entire game. “Keep the game simple, keep the game linear and keep a set of rules that are not gray,” Kohli said.
These two decisions did not go down well with the experts and many felt that India had been deceived on both occasions due to the mistake of the third referee and the issue of the ‘soft signal’ came up in the discussion. Is soft signal relevant in the modern technology used in all international competitions? The soft signal was introduced in the first days of the third referee, but with the improvement of technology, many experts feel that ICC should investigate this issue more seriously.
Former international referee UK Ramaswamy did not understand the rationality behind the discussion on soft signals. “The referees on site meet for consultation and they refer a specific decision to the third referee if they doubt whether the catch has been taken clean or not. How then can a soft signal come into picture? I feel that soft signal does not have a referee. “The third referee, based on the available footage, must decide and in doubt the decision must be in favor of the batsman,” said Ramaswamy.
Another former international referee, I Shivram, also did not prefer the soft signal procedure, especially as a referee does not refer the decision to a third referee, as he is not sure of a fair verdict and has asked for the technological assistance. . “This is something that the ICC needs to take seriously before the World Cup,” he said.
Shivram also said Indian referees came with great praise in their field decisions in the ongoing series but somehow came up for criticism regarding the third referee issue.
‘It’s a lack of experience. A referee hardly gets a chance in domestic cricket, as the third referee in many of the matches is not broadcast with modern technology. Even when there is a third referee, he has to use the service of the static cameras. It’s not an excuse, but a reality, ” he said.
Source: Telangana Today