Perth, 22 November (UITV)- The first match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy is being played between India and Australia at the Perth Stadium from today. The dismissal of Indian opener KL Rahul in the first Test match against Australia at the Perth Stadium became a matter of controversy. Rahul tried to defend Mitchell Starc’s ball in the 23rd over, but the ball went to the wicketkeeper. The on-field umpire declared him not out. However, the Australian team resorted to DRS (Decision Review System), as they felt that the ball had taken the edge of Rahul’s bat.
Third umpire Richard Illingworth saw through ultra-edge technology in the review that a spike was visible when the ball came near. Based on this, he believed that the ball had touched the edge of the bat. However, the footage also showed that the bat and the pad could have collided with each other, due to which the reason for the spike was not clear.
The third umpire asked for a front-on angle, but it was not made available to him. Under compulsion, he had to decide on the basis of the incomplete angle received from behind and Rahul was declared out. Both Rahul and the Indian team were surprised by this decision. Rahul had scored 26 runs in 74 balls and expressed disappointment while going to the dressing room after being out.
The commentators were also surprised by this decision of the third umpire. Many cricket experts also gave their opinion on this controversial decision, in which Ravi Shastri (former Indian coach) said, “There was not enough evidence to overturn the decision of the on-field umpire. Rahul was unlucky.” At the same time, Kerry O’Keefe (former Australian bowler) agreed with this decision and said that the spike may have come due to the collision between the bat and the pad. Former Australian opener Matthew Hayden said on Channel 7 that the bat and pad were not together when the ball passed and the sound caught by Snicko was probably of the collision between the bat and the pad. International umpire Simon Taufel defended the third umpire and said, “He tried to make the right decision, but all the camera angles were not available. The bat was away from the pad in the side-on angle, and the first sound on the RTS was of the collision of the bat and the ball.” He also admitted that if more clear footage was available, the second sound (of bat-pad) could have been understood better.
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This controversial dismissal of KL Rahul raises questions on the use of technical assistance in cricket. Experts believe that the third umpire had difficulty in taking decisions due to the absence of Hot Spot technology and incomplete camera angles.
This incident not only increased Rahul’s disappointment, but also became a matter of debate among cricket fans and experts. Despite the use of technical equipment, the need for more clarity and better technology to make correct decisions in cricket has been emphasized.