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Sorry, wrong injuns:

India closing in on umpires

FORMER leading umpire Robin Bailhache believes umpires have been placed under intolerable pressure following India's successful push to sack Steve Bucknor after a poor second Test in Sydney last month.

While Bailhache did not directly blame the need to please India for two poor decisions struggling South African umpire Rudi Koertzen made against Australia in last Sunday's one-day loss, he said umpires were now "under notice" if things went against India.

Comments

[nick]

Discussion points. Which members of the current Australian team will be jumping ship to IPL if CA doesn't play ball? I think Haydos would have to be thinking about it, as would Symonds. Ponting has as much as said that he is going to play regardless, and Lee would have to have rocks in his head if he passed up the $$$ in favour of getting injured carrying the Australian attack. Surely Brad Hodge would take the $ as well? Who will be umpiring the IPL games?

[Professor Rosseforp]

Shane Warne

[RT]

IPL umpires? The best special guest referee in the business -Stone Cold Steve Austin.

[nick]

Wrong colour. I was thinking they'd pull Javed Miandad out of retirement. It would be as entertaining to see Warnie appeal to him as bowl to him.

[Professor Rosseforp]

Actually I think it's good that there's an alternative employer for cricketers, umpires, commentators -- perhaps even Peter Roebuck.
At least Darrell Hair might now be able to get a paying gig.

[CB]

Not even the Iridians would pay good roops for Spanky. He'd be better employed replacing the movement motor on the sightscreen, wheeling it left and right. Better seen. Not heard. Or read.

[The Atheist]

The rules will be Indian soon.

[Homer]

The day the Sydney Test ended, Robert Craddock, on his blog on the Courier Mail, stated that Bucknor had to go - he had had far too many shockers for far to long for him to umpire in a high profile series as the one between India and Australia.

During India's tour in 2003/04, Bucknor was given 0 points by Ganguly after the Sydney test and yet he was back, officiating in the Tests series between India and Pakistan, soon after - where was the "need to please India" then?

During the ODIs, Bucknor mimicked Dravid in the game following the "lozenge" incident and yet he kept his job - where was the "need to please India" then?

Sachin Tendulkar was given caught behind when there was daylight between bat and ball during the 2005 Test series against Pakistan and he continued to officiate games involving India - where was the "need to please India" then?

The term "Bucknored" is a mode of dismissal most Indians are familiar with - Mr Bucknor, on numerous occasions, has found innovative ways of giving Indian batsmen out and yet, he stayed on on the Elite panel - where was the "need to please India" then?

And not to forget his overbearing attitude when it comes to the Indians on the field - I have lost count of the number of times Mr Bucknor has digressed from his duties as an umpire to don the role of a pompous school teacher, including wagging his finger at players and such like and yet, he continued his job as an ICC umpire - where was the "need to please India" then?

The guy had a shocker at Sydney, he had to go - that was the universal consensus after the Sydney test. But hey, since when did facts matter when it comes to bashing India for all acts of omission and commission and everything in between.

[Tony T]

Homer, I absolutely agree with you that Bucknor is a dud. However, he should not have been replaced after Sydney Test. Why? Because he should not have even been there in the first place. He should have retired after the World Cup Final fiasco.

Mind you, the "need to please India" might have something to do with India's bit about "we won't play unless Bucknor is replaced".

[Homer]

Actually Tony, India not playing had very little to do with Bucknor.

There was indignation in the Indian camp on the manner in which the hearings following the Test had been carried out by Mike Proctor and the corresponding judgment meted to one of their own.

Couple that with the inconsistencies in performance of both the match referee and the umpires over the course of the Sydney test and there was an episode waiting to happen.

It is worth remembering that it was the players, not the BCCI, who decided not to travel to Canberra unless the situation was redressed.

Left to the BCCI, not only would the players have had to travel to Canberra but would have had to play an extra couple of ODIs to make up for acting like "bad boys" :).

Cheers