India vs England: the TV referee's decision making in the spotlight

The television referee for the second test, Anil Chaudhary, had an unforgettable day at the office. If his decision to rule a very strict decision in favor of Rohit Sharma was moot, the decision to declare that Ajinkya Rahane was not out was a secret.

Jack Leach pitched the 75th plus of the day and his second ball left Rahane’s pad into Ollie Pope on the short leg, brushing the glove on its way. The field referee, Virender Sharma, declared that he was not eliminated and England instantly left for the DRS, absolutely certain that Rahane had put it on. India’s vice-captain was hitting 66 at the time.

Chaudhary, the television referee, checked the Ultra-Edge and, without a pickaxe, told his colleague, Sharma, to stay with the decision on the field. Root was not convinced. He insisted that the glove part be checked. This time, however, Chaudhary verified whether it was a valid case for a leg-before, which England never appealed. Later, after the replays showed the full sequence, the England review was reinstated, confirming that the TV referee made a serious mistake.

“We were trying to get the third referee to pass, they were checking the LBW. We knew it would not have come out. We were just trying to get them to see what happened after the ball hit the platform, ”Leach said after the day’s play.

Rahane was castled by Moeen Ali in the next over, adding just one more run to his account. But in the context of the game, the refereeing error could have been costly for England.

The visitors were also unlucky, when the TV referee decided a very close decision against Rohit (at 159) in favor of India. The starter likely got the benefit of the doubt, although replays from different angles didn’t determine any part of Rohit’s rear foot behind the line.

The refereeing so far has been good in this series. Nitin Menon, who was also a field referee in the first test, has been at the top of his game.

On Saturday, on a rough surface, both Menon and Sharma were first class. Chaudhary, however, has not had the best of days. In the first test too, where he was a referee on the field, he made a couple of mistakes: the fleshy edges of Jos Buttler and Washington Sundar were not seen, in a game behind closed doors. DRS overturned Sundar’s decision during India’s second entry, but Buttler survived during England’s first dig, as India had exhausted his criticism.

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