Why India is shunting the Decision Referral System (DRS) in Cricket
This system offers a skipper of a team, unlimited opportunities of successful appeals against the suspected decisions of the on field umpires. India is the only Test playing nation permanently opposing the opportunities of reviewing the on field call on the pretext of system is technically flawed; because if blatantly put, Indian cricket enjoys the errors of the on field umpires and that amounts to fixing of matches particularly of those take place in Indian soil conveniently under cover of human error! Even after TV replays have been introduced to fix the human error, India had meddled with the decisions of the TV Umpire (3rd umpire) using the organiser status to the good effect. A classic example was Sachin Tendulkar declared not out after initial footage showed he was clearly run out during a world cup match in 1996.
India was only apparently silent until the Decision Referral System was first tested in Sri Lanka when the both nations met in a Test series of three tests in 2007. In fact India had been insinuating to keep out the best available option for better umpiring decisions for a lesser controversial results when such a system was set in motion three or four years before that particular trail test series though kept the silence, neither openly criticized nor welcomed it. At the behest Indian political authorities The Board of Control for Cricket for India (BCCI) made a huge blunder through not welcoming it before the test series – at least they could have said that they were optimistic and would submit some proposals for an improved version after that trail test series was over, rather than totally rejecting the system blindly afterwards and the BCCI is yet to clarify its stand that system holds flaws. Another blunder India has been making is, rather than technically explains the flaws, just continues to claim that the system is with flaws even after India has the honor of chairing the ICC for two years, though boasts to be a technically superior nation. The Indian chairman of ICC a former defense minister of India had succeeded in making the DRS system is only optional and not mandatory and have ensured that Indian cricket continues to thrive well through the cover of human error.
Therefore this technically superior nation has neither any inclination towards keeping the Decision Referral System nor inclined to put forward an improved version of the present DRS , which other Test playing nations would prefer adhering without any complain whatsoever. All the other Test playing nations demand for more chances to signal “T” towards the middle umpire through the both hands of the respective skippers instead of one per innings if the first appeal fails. Particularly the associate members of the ICC welcome the system with both hands, because the system somewhat annihilates complete monopoly of a full member team over the associate members through wrong umpiring decisions in which umpire psychology always have tendency to favour the full member and more, thus there are greater chances recognizing of cricketing talent from the associate member teams – thank god all ICC organised fixtures will the have system is in place!
When we elaborate on India’s inferior thinking – Anil Kumbele the skipper of the Indian team that featured the Trial Test Series in Sri Lanka made blundering appeals all to be negated as have been fixed by his mentors, if not how would one explain the referrals an experienced cricketer to the calibre of Anil Kumbele made against the LBW decisions that were very clearly pitched yards out side the leg stump – may be India wants the leg stump pitching rule also overturned as well before accepting DRS. That is why Mahela Jeywardene the opposing captain in the Trial Test Series was very successful, 11 overturned out of fourteen as against Anil Kumbele had only one overturned. Whatever it is Indian cricket can thrive well without DRS and the talent measure is unfair to rankings.
