CHENNAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) thinks the Decision Review System (DRS) is improving, although it’s not sure whether India will find it convincing. Nevertheless, the world body says the matter will come up for discussion at its Cricket Committee meeting later this year.
In the city to announce a partnership deal, ICC chief executive David Richardson said, “Don’t think we’d get to a stage with 100 per cent clarity on every case. But if we achieve 98 per cent, it’s better than 93. You may not have a life boat but if you have a life vest, it’s better than having no vest at all. I see it similarly when it comes to DRS.
“Whether we can persuade India that it’s a worthwhile asset to the game, I cannot be sure at the moment. But certainly, we would like if DRS is to be used in the future, it would be uniform and same wherever it is used,” said Richardson.
India’s contention is that the ball tracking system is not accurate. “India for various reasons have not favoured the use of DRS. They often say that as a matter of principle they like the idea of the umpire making the decisions and the spirit of the game is not to question the decision of the umpire. The other reason is they don’t have confidence in the technology used for DRS.
“The DRS system is being researched and assessed at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) in the US on accuracy and the technology used in detecting faint edges and LBWs. Once we have these reports around May, they will be placed at the Cricket Committee meeting of which Anil Kumble is the chairman. The committee will assess the DRS in its entirety. Ultimately, it will go to the ICC Board for decision,” said Richardson.
BCCI’s style of functioning has come under legal scrutiny. Issues of accountability and transparency have been raised. “Any improvement in the governance of any of our member countries is welcome. ICC is still a members’ organisation. Members are the ones benefitting from the ICC coordinating international cricket. Our new chairman Shashank Manohar is a principled man and tries to adhere to the principles that there should be no conflict of interest when it comes to the governance of the game. I think he is keen that ICC should also look at these aspects,” he said. “Certainly, ICC would encourage all our members to be well-governed. If you have good governance, it might translate to good performance on the field,” he added.
The Chris Gayle incident may be a bad advertisement for the game, but the ICC CEO wants people to forget it and move on. “We treat all players — male and female — with equal respect. Cricket can move on quickly from the incident. I don’t think we need to dwell on it,” opined Richardson, adding that ICC was not sure whether cricket can be an Olympic sport.
MRF ink 4-yr deal
Chennai: MRF Limited signed a four-year deal with ICC as its global partner on Wednesday in the presence of its brand ambassador Sachin Tendulkar. MRF chairman and managing director KM Mammen and ICC chief executive Dave Richardson exchanged the contract. The period includes this year’s World T20, next year’s Champions Trophy, World Cup 2019 and covers eight tournaments. “It’s good to be associated with ICC. Cricket has been synonymous with MRF for decades,” said Mammen. “MRF has been around for a long time and we are proud to be associated with them,” said Richardson.