A third TV-umpiring howler in as many days has thrown doubt over the competence of all-female officiating panels at the Women’s Cricket World Cup.
The International Cricket Council announced the “progressive trend” of only using female umpires last month.
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But two third umpires working in their first World Cup have made baffling decisions this week, to the obvious confusion of the players on the field.
The latest incident involved South Africa batter Sune Luus, who should have been given lbw on Thursday in a match against India.
The ball passed under Luus’s bat before hitting her pad, but after Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur called for a review, third umpire Candace la Borde concluded that it had clipped the toe-end of the bat on the way through.
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This was on the basis of a microscopic murmur on UltraEdge, the sound-based technology, even though that tiny sound could just as well have come from the ball hitting the ground.
Harmanpreet Kaur was unhappy with the outcome of the review – AP/Aijaz Rahi
“Very interesting decision,” commentator Natalie Germanos said on Sky Sports’ coverage, after La Borde had rejected the review. “I think Harmanpreet Kaur is having a little word with Sune – ‘did you really hit that?’”
At least Luus’s escape made little difference to the result, as she added only four more runs before being caught behind. On Tuesday, England benefited enormously on two separate occasions when Heather Knight – who was named player of the match for her match-winning 79 not out – was reprieved by the third umpire.
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First, Knight successfully referred a caught-behind decision before she had scored a run, even though replays were unable to show clearly whether the ball had touched her bat or pad on the way through to the wicketkeeper.
Heather Knight may have been lucky in her match-winning 79 against Bangladesh on Tuesday – AP/Anupam Nath
If that incident was puzzling – given that “inconclusive” information is not meant to change an on-field decision – the second was worse. Knight was so obviously caught at cover by a fielder diving forward that she had walked most of the way to the dressing room before realising that she was being recalled.
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Third umpire Gayathri Venugopalan had decided to review the catch without being asked. After multiple inconclusive replays, she ruled that the ball had touched the ground.
An experienced official should be aware that “grounding” is difficult to judge via pixelated TV footage. Foreshortening creates an optical illusion of contact with the turf for almost any low catch.
Knight admitted afterwards that the “catch at first look I thought was out … I got a bit lucky today but really glad that I made the most of it.”
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Umpiring mistakes are not in themselves unusual, but – as football has discovered with VAR – it is more noticeable and controversial when the error takes place in the TV booth.
In this case, some of the social media debate questioned whether the rarity of DRS (the Decision Review System) in women’s cricket might have left the all-female officiating panel ill-prepared for this high-profile event.
On Wednesday, the more experienced Lauren Agenberg – who is working in her second World Cup – showed better judgment as the third umpire. Agenberg confirmed a low catch by Australia’s Annabel Sutherland, which was very similar to Shorna Akter’s overturned effort against England.
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