Howzatt?
My solution is to implement a protocol similar to that used in Rugby. Leave the on field umpires in charge, their authority can not be challenged and once the finger goes up you are out. However, allow the on field umpires to utiise the technology in their decision making. If they are not 100% convinced about an aspect of the decision then let them go upstairs and ask the third umpire for clarification.
Some questions you might hear:
- “I’m happy with the height and that it was going to hit the stumps, however can you confirm that the ball pitched in line?”
- “Can you check hot spot and advise if that was bat or pad?”
- “Did the ball hit the bat before or after hitting the pad?”
While we’re changing the umpiring laws, lets have the third umpire check all dismissals for front foot no-balls as a matter of course.. if he happens to see one then call the batsman back.
It’d slow the game down a lot though, if the experience with run-outs is anything to go by. Umpires will go upstairs if the bat’s anywhere within a yard of the popping crease.
I don’t really understand the logic of only checking one or two aspects of (say) an LBW decision. Traditionally, umpires gave some batsmen out incorrectly. This means that they were sure that all the requirements for the LBW had been met, so (theoretically) they wouldn’t have seen the need to check them on a replay.
David Barry’s last blog post..Form
I don’t see why it would slow the game down.
The system of allowing a limited number of referrals seems to work.