India are 2-0 down in the ongoing series as so many decisions went against India’s favours. Former Indian cricketers has expressed their views on the quality of umpiring in the ongoing series between India vs Australia and have urged the BCCI to accept DRS if India should win this test series. Here is what the likes of Harbhajan Singh, VVS Laxma, Mohammad Azharuddin and Dilip Vengsarkar have to say on the use of DRS.
Harbhajan Singh
I believe it’s time that we accepted the DRS as it will only benefit our cause. If you look, in both Test matches, India were very competitive but there were key moments when our boys got a raw deal. I can recall four decisions. Shikhar’s (Dhawan) caught behind in the second innings of the first Test in Adelaide. (Cheteshwar) Pujara’s caught behind in the first innings of second Test followed by Rohit (Sharma) and Ashwin’s decision in the second innings. Had DRS been there, all these decisions were sure to be overturned and we might have been in a winning position in both Test matches. Even if I take it for a fact that DRS is not foolproof and 100 percent accurate, from a personal point of view, even 90 percent accurate DRS can get you key decisions at key moments in your favour.
VVS Laxman:
Any technical foolproof system to provide accurate decisions is always welcome. I am not against DRS, but the system is still a long way from being foolproof. I am not convinced about the HotSpot or the HawkEye, which projects the predictable path of the ball for the LBW decisions. As and when these two vital issues of the decision review process are set in order, we can seriously contemplate agreeing to the use of DRS.
Mohammad Azharuddin:
When other cricket playing nations are not averse to using it (DRS) then why is India ignoring it?. Like in this Test match (Brisbane Test), so many decisions went against India, they could have gone in their favour. I mean even the Australians were at the receiving end but India suffered a lot. I strongly feel that either you completely use technology or just ignore it. Go back to the old days when decisions were taken by on field umpires and one had to accept them the way it was. I really don’t know what is the problem. Once the ICC has approved it, then everyone should fall into its ambit. For a simple run-out or an elementary decision the umpires go to the third umpire even if the batsman is three yards short of his crease. I fail to understand this half-hearted approach. Either fully use technology or completely ignore it. When it is approved by ICC then what is the problem in using. It is only beneficial.
Dilip Vengsarkar:
I was of the opinion that DRS is not 100 percent foolproof but it seems we have to go for the technology now. A lot of easy decisions have gone against us and that has hurt us badly in the series. There were some questionable bat-pad decisions and catches as the umpiring has not been up to the mark. We have had some glaring mistakes especially in the first Test. It’s high time that we go for DRS now.