Windies, victims of bad umpires

THE EDITOR: There has been much maligning of the West Indies team since Lara reclaimed the captaincy, and while I agree that the team continues to display a degree of ineptitude that has accounted, in part, for the decline in standards and in our cricketing fortunes, I must make some other observations. If one were to total the umpiring faux pas made in every series involving the WI team in the recent past, the imbalance of good vs bad decisions tends to be to the detriment of the WI. I firmly believe that if correct and fair decisions were given we would have seen different results. Undoubtedly, persistent lack of fairness has contributed to the lacklustre performances we have all been witnessing! One recalls Jack Kallis (South Africa) out quite a few times but given not out; Brian Lara not out quite a few times but adjudged out.

The statistics are there for all to see — ask Michael Holding — yet commentators and journalists from home and abroad (Cozier, Croft, Holding et al) ignore the evidence and continue to demoralise the team, particularly the captain, with their harsh criticism. It is high time that technology is introduced to redress these umpiring ‘discrepancies’ and allow the gentleman’s game to be won or lost fairly and justly. It is a shame that journalists tend to criticise the players but make excuses for the plethora of poor umpiring decisions by the ICC band of umpires! The ICC is to be blamed for this sorry aspect of the game for the problem persists even though the ‘mistakes’ keep occurring with greater regularity.

The code of conduct debars players from expressing their feelings on a decision but they are neither fools nor robots and should be given an outlet to vent their disappointment. Is the ICC code fair? Are umpires above reproach? Why are players the only ones who can be published? Cricket is a profession and a poor umpiring decision can severely affect the outcome of a game and a player’s career. But all we hear from the ‘experts’ is that bad decisions are part and parcel of the game. That’s like saying an innocent man can go to the gallows even though there is evidence to prove that he is innocent! Shame on the ICC! Shame on the journalists, reporters and commentators! Shame on the umpires! These are the people who are bringing the game into disrepute.

D RAMSINGH
San Fernando