England vs India: David Lloyd unhappy with players’ influence on umpire’s decision

Rain has certainly been cricket’s age-old enemy in England. Seldom, you will see a Test match in UK proceeding without the intervention of bad weather. The story has been no different in the ongoing 1st Test match between England and India at the Trent Bridge in Nottingham. A significant part of the game has already been washed out due to rain and it would be interesting to see how the remaining contest pans out.

Meanwhile, cricket expert and commentator David Lloyd has expressed disappointment over an incident that took place on Day 3 of the game. With the drizzle getting heavier, Indian batters KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant told umpire Michael Gough that they want to leave the field. The umpire apparently allowed them and it seemed like the play will come to a halt again.

The umpires need to be much, much firmer: David Lloyd

However, Gough changed his decision after James Anderson intervened. Reacting to this incident, a disgruntled David Lloyd stated that it is the umpires who need to have the authority and control over such decisions. “Who is running this game? The umpires or the players? We had a squally shower come over Trent Bridge that clearly wasn’t going to last long but India refused to bat,” Lloyd wrote in his column for Daily Mail.

“Michael Gough was just letting them walk off until Jimmy Anderson intervened and they carried on. It’s not his job! The umpires need to be much, much firmer,” he added.

Speaking of the happenings to the ongoing Test, England posted a paltry 183 after electing to bat first. In reply, the visiting team advanced to 278 thanks to brilliant half-centuries from KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja. The Three Lions, however, got off to a decent start in their second innings with openers Rory Burns and Dominic Sibley being watchful of the new Dukes ball.

The duo added 25 runs and remained unbeaten at stumps on Day 3. With India having a lead of 70 runs, they are certainly in a better position. However, one must not forget the visitors will bat last on the track and any target over 150 can prove to be daunting.

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