Pakistan greats call for axing neutral umpires

[Super Misbah]

Well well well , in a matter of days , this umpire issue is getting from bad to worse , it was 1 match few bad decisions , and the whole place has erupt , pathetic

Source : http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5...uSaJPvz4WPOurA

KARACHI (AFP) — Pakistan greats urged the cricket world to axe the tradition of choosing neutral umpires in favour of those considered the best at the job, in the aftermath of the crisis-hit Australia-India series.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) was forced to dump veteran West Indian umpire Steve Bucknor from the third Test in Australia following Indian complaints over his performance in last week's Sydney Test.

"I would recommend the best umpires on the rankings established by the ICC and not neutral ones. What is the use of a neutral umpire when he is not the best?" Wasim Bari, a former Pakistan captain and ex-chief of selectors, said.

"Pakistan takes the credit for introducing neutral umpires but now the idea is not neutrality but the right decision," said Bari, who played 81 Tests for Pakistan.

Another former Pakistan captain, Ramiz Raja, said the controversy should not be allowed to do any more harm to Australia-India team relations, and would not have happened in the first place if umpiring standards were higher.

"I sincerely hope that the matter is not used as a source of confrontation, but to develop better umpires to overcome such problems in future," the widely travelled television commentator told AFP.

India claimed it lost the Sydney test, won in dramatic fashion in the final minutes of the fifth day, because of poor decisions from Bucknor.

The series descended into acrimony after Indian captain Anil Kumble accused the Australians of bad sportsmanship and Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh received a three-Test suspension for racially abusing an Australian player.

Raja said the incidents at Sydney were "deplorable" for the game.

"What happened at Syndey was sad but I think good sense prevailed after the ICC took some steps and I don't see it as a victory for India or a defeat for the ICC," said Raja, who played 57 Tests for Pakistan.

Pakistan was at the centre of an umpiring row during the Oval Test against England two years ago when they forfeited the match after Australian umpire Darrell Hair accused them of ball tampering.

Hair's penalty incensed then-Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul Haq, who refused to take the field, a stance which forced the umpires to award the match to England -- the first forfeit in Test cricket's long history.

The ICC later removed Hair from its elite umpiring panel.

Raja said the best umpires should officiate future matches, whether they were from neutral countries or not.

"There is a need to increase the number of umpires in the Elite Panel because with eight umpires you don't give them a chance to acclimatise and maintain their performance," he said.

"To me good umpires should officiate the match, even if it is played by his home team, so that we have the best men in the centre. The credibility factor should be taken into account while posting umpires."

[12thMan]

How are top umpire going to officiate this series. There are 3 series going on right now and all the 6 teams think their match is more important. Just because this series is Aus-Ind doesn't mean that Tuafel (who is currently working at SA-WI series) should be appointed. Only free umpire right now might be Aleem Daar and I am glad he was not in this series.

These people should have also said which umpires should have been appointed here and which series are they going to scrafice so they can have more enjoyment? I understand Bucknor was a bad choice because of past history with India. How about exchanging umpires with Bang-NZ series.

[Boundary View]

No way. England and Aus have a built in rule which says that their umpires are the best. They will not accept any other ruling. It's called arrogance. Stick with neutral umpires. Its the fairest system.

[mmkextreme_1]

Pakistan greats on Wednesday urged the cricket world to axe the tradition of choosing neutral umpires in favour of those considered the best at the job, in the aftermath of the crisis-hit Australia-India series.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) was forced to dump veteran West Indian umpire Steve Bucknor from the third Test in Australia following Indian complaints over his performance in last week’s Sydney Test.

“I would recommend the best umpires on the rankings established by the ICC and not neutral ones. What is the use of a neutral umpire when he is not the best?” Wasim Bari, a former Pakistan captain and ex-chief of selectors, said.

“Pakistan takes the credit for introducing neutral umpires but now the idea is not neutrality but the right decision,” said Bari, who played 81 Tests for Pakistan.

Another former Pakistan captain, Ramiz Raja, said the controversy should not be allowed to do any more harm to Australia-India team relations, and would not have happened in the first place if umpiring standards were higher.

“I sincerely hope that the matter is not used as a source of confrontation, but to develop better umpires to overcome such problems in future,” the widely travelled television commentator told AFP.

India claimed it lost the Sydney test, won in dramatic fashion in the final minutes of the fifth day, because of poor decisions from Bucknor.

The series descended into acrimony after Indian captain Anil Kumble accused the Australians of bad sportsmanship and Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh received a three-Test suspension for racially abusing an Australian player.

Raja said the incidents at Sydney were “deplorable” for the game.

“What happened at Syndey was sad but I think good sense prevailed after the ICC took some steps and I don’t see it as a victory for India or a defeat for the ICC,” said Raja, who played 57 Tests for Pakistan.

Pakistan was at the centre of an umpiring row during the Oval Test against England two years ago when they forfeited the match after Australian umpire Darrell Hair accused them of ball tampering.

Hair’s penalty incensed then-Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul Haq, who refused to take the field, a stance which forced the umpires to award the match to England — the first forfeit in Test cricket’s long history.

The ICC later removed Hair from its elite umpiring panel.

Raja said the best umpires should officiate future matches, whether they were from neutral countries or not.

“There is a need to increase the number of umpires in the Elite Panel because with eight umpires you don’t give them a chance to acclimatise and maintain their performance,” he said.

“To me good umpires should officiate the match, even if it is played by his home team, so that we have the best men in the centre. The credibility factor should be taken into account while posting umpires.”

[mmkextreme_1]

Pakistan will start building a brand new stadium in Islamabad next year, a top Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) official said on Wednesday. Shafqat Naghmi, PCB’s Chief Operating Officer, told this correspondent that the board signed an MoU with the Capital Development Authority (CDA) on Wednesday regarding the project.

He said that the CDA has allotted a 40-acre piece of land in Islamabad for the construction of the cricket stadium.

“We will prepare a blueprint of the project soon and will begin construction work within the next one year,” he said.

Being the federal capital, Islamabad has some of the best sports infra-structures that includes the Pakistan Sports Complex. However, the city doesn’t have any cricket facility of international standard. In contrast, Rawalpindi — Islamabad’s twin city — frequently hosts international cricket matches.

Meanwhile, the budget of this year’s ICC Champions Trophy to be hosted by Pakistan will be finalised in a week’s time. Naghmi said that the budget for the mega tournament to be held during September in various centres of the country would be approved following negotiations with the International Cricket Council.

[12thMan]

http://www.pakpassion.net/ppforum/sh...ad.php?t=29205