- Stokes called for ‘referee’s decision’ to be thrown out after controversial Crawley decision
- But the England captain was reprieved for such a decision in the fourth Test.
- Root fell victim to the DRS decision despite the ball being bowled outside the leg stump line.
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England captain Ben Stokes was pardoned over the referee’s decision on the Decision Review System just days after calling for its abolition.
Stokes was angered by a controversial DRS call that went against opener Zak Crawley during the third Test against India in Rajkot last week.
He was seen with England head coach Brendon McCullum speaking to match referee Jeff Crowe after DRS upheld referee Kumar Dharamasena’s decision to give out Crawley despite footage showing the ball would not touch the top of the leg stump.
“We just wanted some clarity on Zak’s DRS when the footage came back,” Stokes said at the time. It is evident that in the replay the ball has not touched the stump.
“So when the umpire gives the order and the ball doesn’t hit the stumps, we are a bit taken aback.”
England captain Ben Stokes was pardoned by the referee’s call in a DRS review days after calling for its abolition, but he did not take advantage and was sacked soon after.
Stokes welcomed the umpire’s decision in a tight review by India during the fourth Test in Ranchi.
Stokes (left) and England head coach Brendon McCullum speak to match referee Jeff Crowe after Zak Crawley was sent off in a controversial DRS decision in the third Test.
Stokes failed to capitalize on his release and was bowled by Kuldeep Yadav soon after.
Stokes then added: “My personal opinion is that if the ball hits the stumps, it is hitting the stumps.” If I’m being completely honest, they should remove the ‘referee’s decision’.
But on the third day of the fourth Test in Ranchi on Sunday, Stokes was saved by the umpire’s decision on leg stump when Ravindra Jadeja’s ball hit him and hit the pads.
Stokes was at four at the time with England four wickets down as they struggled to try and build a winning lead against India and level the series at 2-2.
Rod Tucker rejected Jadeja’s strong calls and said it “would not be published” before India reviewed it. Stokes smiled wryly as the stadium’s big screen appeared with the referee’s decision.
But he was unable to capitalize, falling to Kuldeep Yadav a few overs later without having moved his score. Stokes was hit on the shin in front of off stump before the ball spun back between his legs and dislodged the bail anyway.
Stokes was England’s fifth victim with just 120 on the board, a lead of 166 runs on a very unpredictable surface.
Earlier, India had been bowled out for 307, a first innings deficit of 46, and Shoaib Bashir completed his maiden five-wicket haul.
Even that was frustrating for England, with Dhruv Jurel making 90 after Ollie Robinson dropped him for 59.
England’s Joe Root (right) was the victim of another marginal DRS call during Sunday’s match.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan posted this screenshot of Root’s DRS decision
Replays appeared to show Root was dismissed even though the ball went off the line.
Ben Duckett was the first English batsman to fall for 15 and Ravi Ashwin then removed Ollie Pope for a golden duck.
Joe Root was the third wicket to fall, but in controversial fashion, with Hawkeye graphics for India review appearing to show the ball bowled outside leg stump.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan posted on Hawkeye is having an average series. And that is done for England’s best player, Root.
The post was later deleted, but Vaughan later questioned why the television coverage had not featured many replays of Root’s dismissal.
Vaughan initially tweeted that Hawkeye was having a ‘surprise’ before deleting the post.
Vaughan then asked why more replays of Root’s dismissal were not shown in the television coverage.
“It’s probably the top moment of the entries so far, so we should see a lot more of it… Asking for a friend,” he tweeted. She later posted a screenshot of the controversial DRS decision.
Things got worse for England with Zak Crawley (60), Stokes and Jonny Bairstow (30) dismissed to leave them in trouble.