By IANS
Brisbane : Australia is pressing for better training, more pay and support for top cricket umpires following some glaring mistakes in the ongoing triangular series even as Sri Lankan wicket-keeper Kumar Sangakkara has called upon players to accept the umpires’ decisions “humbly”.
Umpiring was a hot topic during the recent India-Australia Test series here and it still remains there during the Commonwealth Bank Triangular Series, also involving Sri Lanka.
“Australia is spearheading an overhaul of elite umpiring, with the fiascos of this powderkeg summer leaving world cricket wiping egg off its face,” wrote Courier Mail newspaper.
“Umpires Steve Bucknor and Rudi Koertzen have been so bad this summer – with Koertzen making his latest incredible blunder in Brisbane this week – that they have poured fuel on the fire of an already explosive tour,” it said.
Bucknor and Koertzen are the world’s oldest umpires aged 61 and 58 respectively. on the other hand, some of the world’s best umpires are some of youngest. Australia’s Simon Taufel, who has won the four successive official Best Umpire’s award, is 37 and Pakistan’s Aleem Dar’s 39. All four are on the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Elite Panel.
Umpires now stand in about eight-10 Tests, 10-15 One-Day Internationals a year, plus other ICC events, including the World Cup, the Champions Trophy and the Twenty20 World Cup.
“Australia is also pressing for better training, more pay and more support for elite umpires. A review of umpires conducted by the ICC late last year promised to address these problems,” said the paper.
Koertzen was back in the news after he erroneously gave India’s Rohit Sharma out in the match against Australia in Brisbane Feb 3.
“Dodgy umpiring was a hot topic again this week when Koertzen gunned rookie Rojit Sharma caught behind when he had clearly missed a Muttiah Muralidaran doosra by what turned out to be a significant margin,” it said.
Sangakkara has, however, called the players to accept all umpiring decisions.
“Sangakkara was the only Sri Lankan to appeal and an incredulous Sharma stood at the crease and was later docked 10 percent of his match fee for dissent. Sangakkara, a lawyer who is one of world cricket’s sharpest tongues, believes umpires are being put under extra pressure by players who refuse to accept their decisions, no matter how bad,” he was quoted as saying by the paper.
“If the umpire makes a decision, whichever way it goes, we should be humble enough to accept that and play cricket. We as players have to realise it goes both ways, no one’s perfect, the players make mistakes at certain times and we don’t really help the umpires out. The whole beauty of cricket is that human element.”