India's captain, MS Dhoni, has once again voiced his displeasure at the handling of the Decision Review System, after Rahul Dravid fell victim to his third controversial dismissal of the summer.
Dravid, who was playing in his first ODI for two years, made 2 from six balls but had initially been given not out by umpire Billy Doctrove, after Stuart Broad and Craig Kieswetter appealed in unison for a faint edge to the keeper.
Broad was so sure of the edge he immediately signalled for a review before consulting his captain, Alastair Cook. However, the evidence reviewed by Marais Erasmus, the third umpire, appeared inconclusive. Neither of the two Hot Spot cameras picked up any edge, and there was no clear deviation on the slow-motion replay.
However, after a brief consultation with Erasmus, Doctrove decided to reverse his decision, to the clear surprise of Dravid. A few minutes later, Snickometer suggested that there had been some noise as ball passed bat, although under the current provisions of the DRS, that evidence is not meant to be taken into account.
Dhoni has expressed his reservations about the DRS in the past, not least during the last ODI between England and India at Bangalore in the World Cup, when Ian Bell was reprieved by Billy Bowden after advancing more than 2.5 metres down the wicket during a referred lbw appeal. On this occasion, however, he seemed genuinely baffled about the inner workings of the system.
"I still exactly don't know how he was given out," said Dhoni. "Whether they used Snickometer, whether Snickometer is allowed to be used, whether the audio technician gave him out, whether the third umpire gave him out. So it is quite complex. There is affair amount of questions when it comes to the DRS and if there is still some doubt, why shouldn't go to the batsman."
As for Dravid, his latest extraction followed two eyebrow-raising dismissals in the final two Tests at Edgbaston, where he was caught behind off his shoe lace, and at The Oval, where he was given out caught at bat-pad off Graeme Swann despite a lack of clear evidence. On that occasion, he defused the subsequent row by admitting he had got a thin inside-edge, but this time, he was not so conciliatory.
"He said he had not edged it," Dhoni said. "There was no mark when it comes to Hot Spot. There was no visual deflection as such. And the umpire had given not out. I thought the benefit of doubt goes to the batsman. That is a big thing."
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