RAJKOT: “It’d be nice. We had enough practice of it recently,” was Stuart Broad’s response to a query on DRS to be used on Indian soil in a bilateral series for the first time. The English quick was referring to the series of referrals highlighting his team’s tour of Bangladesh.
Jokes apart, it will be a historic occasion of sorts because the decision to endorse the system marks the end of BCCI’s long-standing policy of abhorring it. Considering that just two members of this Indian squad (Gautam Gambhir, Ishant Sharma) were part of the lot that tasted and rejected DRS when in made ‘debut’ in Sri Lanka in 2008, the hosts may have some catching up to do, as most other teams have got used to it.
This is not as simple as ‘ask the third umpire when in doubt’. The number of reviews restricted to two per innings and an unsuccessful review cancelling one of those means it has to be used judiciously and sparingly. The wicketkeeper’s role becomes important, given his position to form a better idea of the line of the ball. So does the non-striker’s, whose added responsibility it becomes to advise the batsman if it’s prudent to ‘go upstairs’ or walk back.
“It’s a completely new concept to all of us. We’ve been discussing it since the previous series and there are plans. The wicketkeeper and slip fielders will have a role to play. It’s them who can convey their opinion to the captain and the bowler (to ask for it or not). The non-striker also has to watch what’s happening all the time in order to give right advice to his partner,” said Ajinkya Rahane.
Even though Indian players and the BCCI maintained they were not certain about the accuracy of aspects like ‘ball tracking’ and ‘hot spot’, other teams found them acceptable and felt they benefited from the number of correct decisions the system facilitates.
“I enjoy playing with DRS because of the number of right decisions you get. Good communication between players and being clear in decision-making become important when you have this. And so does the role of the wicketkeeper. I think we could have done better with it in Bangladesh,” said Broad.
“We’ve seen that many aspects of the technology were not 100 per cent accurate in the past. As long as it is 100 per cent, there is no harm using it to assist the umpires in making decisions. Only time will tell how close to perfection the new technology is,” was how Sunil Gavaskar summed it up when Express sought his views on this.
With spin expected to play a major part in the series, there could be many close calls, which means anxious moments thinking whether ‘to or not to’. For once, Indians will be lower on experience on something on home soil.