Speaking on the eve of the second Test in Kolkata on Thursday, Kohli said, “We will certainly look to probably introduce it (DRS) in future.” These words, coming from the all powerful Kohli, seems to indicate that the BCCI seems to be doing a rethink.
In a further revelation, Kohli said that there had been meetings and discussions the board held with the players on the merits and demerits of the DRS. “There has been some meetings on this topic and I feel our views have been taken into account,” Kohli said.
A former cricketer who has played for Team India said the very fact that the BCCI had discussions and meetings with the players over the implementation of DRS was a welcome move. “Previously, the BCCI was not even willing to have any talk on the DRS issue. They were dead against it. I feel the very fact that they are getting the players’ opinion is a very welcome step,” the cricketer added.
The cricketer went on say that it was high time that the BCCI implemented the DRS. “When you look around you find that almost all the leading cricketing nations have adopted this system. For long, the Indian board has even refused to implement it. Now the time is ripe that the board feels this system is going to actually help Indian cricketers,” he added.
Just to jog the readers’ memory, it must be mentioned here that the Indian board was one of the first to implement the DRS in 2008. But the DRS was not a foolproof system then as it is now and subsequently, the BCCI decided to drop it. “I think back then, the system had not evolved nor was it as good as it is now. So I think the board’s decision to junk it then is quite justified,” said a former India selector.
Interestingly, BCCI president Anurag Thakur had said last month that India was ready to accept DRS, but without HawkEye. He was quite specific about leaving out the Hawk Eye. “You can have some and leave (Hawk-Eye),” Thakur had told ESPNcricinfo website in Florida during India’s T20 series against the West Indies. When asked specifically if the BCCI would accept the use of visual aids such as Hot Spot and real-time Snicko in addition to the standard camera angles, Thakur nodded in the affirmative. He reiterated the BCCI’s longstanding opposition to Hawk-Eye, though, because it is not “100% foolproof”.
Meanwhile, New Zealand middle-order batsman Luke Ronchi said that stand-in captain Ross Taylors several claims of bad light during an overcast and rain-shortened day two of the second Test against India went in vain as the umpires take the final call.
“It was exactly the same like it was yesterday. Umpires take a call on when seamers can bowl and when the spinners can bowl or whatever during bad light. Yesterday we had the option to bowl spin but we chose not to.
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“India wanted to bowl couple of overs of spin today I guess, but umpires must have intervened and said it is too dark to play,” Ronchi, who fell for 35 to Ravindra Jadeja just before rain halted play and early tea was called, told reporters after the match.
“It’s the umpire’s decision at the end of the day. We can’t say about it. Of course we can ask the umpire to have a look at it. But at the end of the day it’s their call.”
Ronchi admitted the visitors did not bat the way they wanted to.
“We did not get too many runs as we wanted to. Well, that’s cricket. We will comeback tomorrow and scrap as many (wickets) as we can (when India bat in the second innings).”