Umpire's Call Frustration — Ashes 2019
England vs Australia
1-5 August 2019
Multiple decisions in the 2019 Ashes were upheld as 'umpire's call' despite ball tracking showing the ball hitting the stumps, reigniting the debate about the DRS threshold.
England vs Australia
1-5 August 2019
Multiple decisions in the 2019 Ashes were upheld as 'umpire's call' despite ball tracking showing the ball hitting the stumps, reigniting the debate about the DRS threshold.
England vs Australia
22-25 August 2019
During Ben Stokes' miraculous Headingley chase, Jack Leach survived an LBW appeal that was given 'umpire's call' on review, allowing the legendary partnership to continue.
New Zealand vs India
9-10 July 2019
The rain-delayed 2019 World Cup semi-final produced multiple DRS controversies, with several New Zealand batsmen surviving LBW decisions on umpire's call. India felt numerous decisions went against them. New Zealand won by 18 runs.
New Zealand vs India
9 July 2019
In the rain-interrupted 2019 Cricket World Cup semi-final, India's bowlers were denied multiple LBW reversals due to umpire's call — ball-tracking showed balls clipping the edge of the stumps but less than 50% contact, leaving the on-field not-out decisions standing. Kane Williamson survived at least two such decisions and New Zealand won by 18 runs, reigniting the debate about the umpire's call threshold.
Various
1 January 2017
The 'Umpire's Call' element of DRS, where marginal LBW decisions are upheld even when ball-tracking shows the ball hitting the stumps, has been one of cricket's most divisive ongoing controversies.
England vs Australia
6 August 2015
Joe Root survived a plumb LBW at Trent Bridge after Australia's DRS review returned umpire's call — with only a fraction of the ball clipping the stumps. Root went on to score 130 and England won the match to retain the Ashes.
England vs Australia
6 August 2015
Joe Root survived a clear LBW — umpire Aleem Dar gave it not out and Australia's review showed umpire's call with ball just clipping the stumps at under 50%. Root scored 130 and England retained the Ashes.
ICC vs Players and Fans
2009-11-01
The 'Umpire's Call' component of DRS — which upholds on-field decisions when the ball is clipping the stumps — was introduced to protect umpire authority but has been consistently criticised for producing outcomes that seem to contradict the purpose of technological review.
BCCI vs ICC and Rest of Cricket
2009-11-01
The BCCI's refusal to use the Decision Review System in India home Tests from 2009 to 2016 — citing technology reliability concerns but widely attributed to opposition to any challenge to umpiring decisions — created a two-tier international cricket system where the sport's most commercially powerful nation played by different rules.