Former Australian pace bowling sensation Mitchell Johnson has made an impactful statement about the much hyped Decision Review System (DRS). Johnson, in his column, stated that he was not in favor of having the DRS. The left arm slinging pacer also said that he would be happy if the controversial system was eased out of the game.
“In my mind, we need to decide if we want to use technology properly or not use it at all,” Johnson wrote. “I’m happy to have no DRS – cricket worked pretty well without it for over 100 years. I tend to agree with India’s perspective on the DRS debate – it’s either got to be spot on, or not used at all. “If we can make sure that technology is used to get the right decision every time, then that’s great. But until then, I’m not so sure,” he added.
Addressing the issue of a controversial no ball recently, where Adam Voges despite being bowled on a fair delivery was given a life after the on field umpire thought that the bowler had overstepped his mark, Johnson wrote, “It worked out pretty well for ‘Vogesy’ and I’m really happy for him but as a bowler, I can tell you it’s very annoying when I see that stuff happen.” “Bowlers are checked for a no-ball almost every time they take a wicket, so it’s a bit strange that it can’t work the other way. Surely the third umpire could intervene?”
On his upcoming stint with the Kings XI Punjab in the IPL, Johnson wrote, “Just this week, I shook off the cobwebs by having a bowl in the nets and I was pleased to discover that I still had the competitive edge in me,” Johnson wrote. “I’ll get into more bowling over the coming weeks but seeing as I haven’t played any cricket for a while, I’m really just testing the waters at the moment. “In Twenty20 you only need to bowl four overs per match, so I figure as long as I’m fit and strong, then the bowling side of things will be fine.”