Indian Premier League might be equipped with DRS in its newest edition

The Indian Premier League (IPL) right from its inception has improved every year. They have been adopting every technology that makes cricket better. The IPL is the biggest league in the world and also the most entertaining. Many young players broke into the Indian team through the Indian Premier League. Similarly, the league has given a platform to the umpires as well.

There were some great umpires who made it to the international stage because of the IPL. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is not stopping there. They might as well be planning to go one step forward in this year’s IPL. They recently arranged a workshop for the top 10 umpires in India who are not in the ICC circle. The workshop was conducted for training the umpires in mastering the Decision Review System.

DRS in IPL?

The DRS was first discarded by the BCCI but they have now accepted it. They arranged a workshop for the umpires in Vizag which was conducted by Denis Burns, who is the umpires coach with the International Cricket Council (ICC) and by Paul Reiffel, a former Australian cricketer turned umpire. This might hint that the BCCI is thinking of introducing DRS in the IPL.

An official turned the rumor down but did not rule out the possibility. “Nothing has been decided,” said the official while talking to Times of India. “This is the first time that such a DRS specific workshop has been conducted for BCCI umpires.”

“Technology is definitely going to play a key role in umpiring decisions in the future. So there has to be awareness among the umpires regarding DRS. As of now, there hasn’t been any decision taken on having DRS this IPL. But there’s still time,” the official continued.

Paul Reiffel and Denis Burns explained the complexities of the Decision Review System to the umpires. The official said that the Indian umpires who are also the fourth umpires in international games should be “well versed” with the system.

He said, “Indian umpires who are officiating as fourth umpires in international matches should also be well versed with DRS protocols. Burns and Reiffel explained how the system works, the communication required during DRS calls and there was a simulation session as well. The workshop carried on for the entire day.”

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