MCC World Cricket Committee back technology

Date released: 11 October 2007

The MCC World Cricket Committee met recently, over two days in Cape Town, and heard presentations from experts in television and other technologies, before announcing support for technology to assist umpires in their pursuit of near-flawless decision-making.

It recommended a continuation of the Player Challenge experiment, as trialled by ECB in the Friends Provident Trophy this summer.

Under the system two appeals against umpiring decisions per innings were allowed to both the fielding and batting sides. If successful, a right to challenge would not be forfeited.

In the ECB experiment, however, the third umpire could overturn a decision only if the on-field umpire had made a ‘clear and obvious mistake’.

Umpire Simon Taufel refers a decision as Kevin Pietersen watches on The MCC World Cricket Committee proposes that the third umpire be able to make his own decision with the help of much more expensive and sophisticated technological evidence.

For example, Ultra Motion cameras should always be available to provide evidence of thin edges in bat-pad catches or LBWs.

Hawk-Eye testing

MCC has offered to assist with the increased costs of these cameras for the trial period, but also concluded that the trials should take place in a Test series, where the highest quality of technological presence is assured.

The Committee felt that the game should make use of Hawk-Eye to assist in the tracking of deliveries for LBW decisions up to the point of impact with the batsman, but that Hawk-Eye’s Predictive Path, currently used on television to predict where the ball might have gone thereafter, should not be used by the third umpire.

So that Hawk-Eye can be used in the trials, the Committee believes that the Hawk-Eye system should be subjected to independent testing to ensure its accuracy and reliability.

This follows the procedure of the International Tennis Federation when Hawk-Eye was adopted as part of the official line-call process.

Hawk-Eye: is used in the MCC Indoor School The makers of Hawk-Eye, present at the Cape Town meeting, have guaranteed the accuracy of their system of tracking the ball to the point where it pitches and also where it makes contact with the batsman, to within 5mm. This would need to be independently verified.

The MCC World Cricket Committee does not believe that other technology, such as ‘Snickometer’ and ‘Hot-spot’, should be used for initial trials.

However, consideration could be given to all technologies if they are subjected to the same process of independent testing as Hawk-Eye.

Challenges & Spirit of Cricket

The Committee feels that the Player Challenge system could have a positive effect on the spirit of the game.

A batsman who gets an obvious edge on a ball but is given ‘not out’ may be more inclined to ‘walk’ in the knowledge that he would certainly be given out by the third umpire, if the fielding side made a challenge.

The Committee considered alternatives to a Player Challenge system.

In a previous trial, where umpires had the ability to refer all decisions to the third umpire, the on-field umpires delegated almost all responsibility to the third umpire.

This, in turn, led to lengthy delays whilst deliberations were made, which had a detrimental effect on over rates and proved frustrating for spectators.

This led the Committee to decide that a player challenge system would be more appropriate.

The Umpire & Spirit of Cricket should always be respected The Committee recognised that to dispute an umpire’s decision is contrary to the Spirit of Cricket but felt that the system is nonetheless worth trialling when utilised in tandem with the extended availability of technology to the third umpire.

However, the trial must be conducted in such a way as to assist the umpires in every possible way and all challenges to umpiring decisions in the trial must be made in a way which maintains the umpires’ dignity and authority over the game.

MCC World Cricket Committee – Statement on the number and format of International Matches

The MCC World Cricket Committee also discussed the amount of cricket expected of International players.

The Committee firstly commented on the success of the ICC World Twenty20 Championship, noting how the reduced number of teams from the World Cup, from 16 to 12, improved the level of competition.

The brevity of the games allowed for a much quicker tournament, with three games being able to be played consecutively in a day.

The Committee congratulated the ICC on the success of the tournament.

Board pressure & burnout

The Committee expressed fears that the success of the competition will lead to pressure from Boards to increase the amount of Twenty20 cricket played.

Presently, the ICC only allows countries to play a maximum of three Twenty20 games in a home summer and the Committee felt that this should not be increased.

Domestic Twenty20 Cup matches are popular at Lord's An increase in the number of International Twenty20 fixtures could have a detrimental effect not only on One-Day International and Test Cricket, but also on domestic Twenty20 competitions which have proved so popular.

Some sides are playing 15 Test Matches and 30 One Day Internationals each year, as well as Twenty20 matches, which the Committee felt was too much.

12 Test Matches is considered a reasonable limit and the maximum number of games in a One Day International Series should be 5.

The Committee is worried that players will increasingly suffer from tiredness and injury as a result of their increased schedules, as well as having no time to play in their own domestic cricket.

MCC decided to undertake some research into the subject.

MCC World Cricket Committee are:

Tony Lewis: MCC World Cricket Committee Chairman Tony Lewis (Chairman)
Mike Atherton
Mike Brearley
Geoffrey Boycott
Martin Crowe
Tony Dodemaide
Rahul Dravid
Andy Flower
Mike Gatting
Majid Khan
Anil Kumble
Barry Richards
David Shepherd
Alec Stewart
Michael Tissera
Courtney Walsh
Steve Waugh