System failure leaves teams with no DRS for an hour on the third day

The third day of the final Test between India and Australia saw Ravindra Jadeja celebrate his fifty with his sword celebration and India take a crucial 30-run lead. However, like always DRS was not kept out of the game at all. The very first ball of the day Jadeja was wrongly given out caught behind and the decision was overturned as he reviewed it.

Shortly after that, the Decision Review System was unavailable for both the teams as there was a system failure and the ball tracking system could not be used. The umpires were quick to convey the message to the on-field players.

The Australians however, appealed for lbw thrice during the one hour when DRS was not available. They felt they were unlucky but the umpires were spot on all the occasion as every single time the ball was pitching outside leg and Marais Erasmus was back in form after wrongly giving Ravindra Jadeja out on the first ball of the day.

The DRS was available right after the drinks break after the first hour as Jadeja turned up the heat. Josh Hazlewood got Wriddhiman Saha trapped in front of the wicket and there was a huge appeal, again Marais Erasmus in the heat of the moment said that it hit the bat.

Smith thought otherwise and went for the review anyway and it was clearly hitting the bat. Australia were left with no reviews as they lost both their reviews. However, the first ball of the day showed how important DRS is in the game because if there was no DRS Jadeja would have been out and the Indians would have conceded the lead if we consider how they collapsed after he eventually departed.

There are people who are absolutely against the Decision Review System but it is there for the howlers which umpires commit sometimes and it is now an integral part of cricket.

Watch the video of Jadeja’s DRS referral here shared by BCCI on Facebook: