‘You can physically see where it has hit you’ - Ben Stokes calls for removing umpire’s call for pitching and impact

Ben Stokes, the England all-rounder, has suggested some changes to the International Cricket Council (ICC) regarding the usage of the Decision Review System (DRS) in LBW calls. He wants the apex cricket board to remove the umpire’s call while judging the point of impact and pitching of the ball.

At the present point in time, three parameters are taken into account for LBW decisions – the point of impact of the ball when it hits the body, the pitching of the ball, and the prediction of whether or not the ball would have crashed on to the stumps.

Stokes reckons that the umpire’s call should only be taken into consideration to confirm whether or not the ball is smashing the stumps as it involves a prediction from on-field umpires.

Ben Stokes has his say

“I think the umpire’s call on stumps should stay because that is a prediction after what has happened. But I think the umpire’s call with pitching in line and impact should be eradicated because you can physically see where the ball has pitched, and you can physically see where it has hit you.

“If the ball has pitched in line or hit you in line, I think it should just be green, whereas the ball hitting the stumps is a prediction. You can physically see from all the cameras that they have got if it has pitched in line or hit in line, or if half the ball is out or half the ball is in,” Stokes told Daily Mail.

The on-field call stays if the ball tracker shows that not more than 50 percent of the ball is aligning with any one of the above parameters. Stokes put forth his comments after the ICC decided to go ahead with the umpire’s call. Anil Kumble, who was in charge of the decision-making, put forth the importance of the umpire’s call.

“The principle underpinning DRS was to correct clear errors in the game whilst ensuring the role of the umpire as the decision-maker on the field of play was preserved,” Kumble said.

The ICC, in the meantime, put forward a number of other changes regarding the LBW call. One of them is lifting the wicket’s hitting zone to the top of the bails if the batsman doesn’t offer a shot.