- Stokes called for the ‘referee’s call’ to be scrapped after Crawley’s controversial decision
- But the England skipper got a reprieve from such a decision in the fourth Test
- Root fell victim to the DRS decision despite pitching the ball outside the leg stump line
England captain Ben Stokes was given a reprieve following a referee’s call on the Decision Review System, just days after calling for it to be scrapped.
Stokes was angry over a controversial DRS call against opener Zak Crawley during the third Test against India in Rajkot last week.
He was seen with England head coach Brendon McCullum speaking to match referee Jeff Crowe after referee Kumar Dharamasena’s decision to send off Crawley was upheld by DRS despite footage showing the ball missing the top of the leg stump.
“We just wanted some clarity on Zak’s DRS when the footage came back,” Stokes said at the time. ‘The ball clearly misses the stump in the replay.
“So when the referee gave the order and the ball didn’t actually hit the stumps, we were a bit baffled.”
England captain Ben Stokes was granted a reprieve from Umpire’s Call during a DRS review, days after calling for its abolition – but he failed to benefit and was sacked shortly afterwards
Stokes was grateful for the umpire’s call in a tight India review during the fourth Test in Ranchi
Stokes (left) and England head coach Brendon McCullum spoke to match referee Jeff Crowe after Zak Crawley was given off in a controversial DRS decision in the third test
Stokes was unable to capitalize on his break as Kuldeep Yadav bowled him soon after
Stokes then added: ‘My personal opinion is that if the ball hits the stumps, it hits the stumps. If I’m completely honest, they should take away the referee’s call.’
But on the third day of the fourth Test in Ranchi on Sunday, Stokes was spared by the umpire’s decision on the leg stump when Ravindra Jadeja’s ball beat him and hit the pads.
Stokes was on four at the time, with England trailing four wickets as they attempted to build a match-winning lead against India and level the series at 2–2.
Rod Tucker rejected Jadeja’s loud calls and issued it ‘not out’ before India reviewed. Stokes smiled wryly as the stadium’s big screen lit up with the referee’s call.
But he couldn’t capitalize and fell to Kuldeep Yadav a few overs later after failing to improve his score. Stokes was hit on the shin before the off-stump before the ball spun back between his legs and still dislodged the bails.
Stokes was England’s fifth victim with just 120 on the board, a lead of 166 runs on a highly unpredictable surface.
India were earlier bowled out for 307, down 46 in the first innings, with Shoaib Bashir completing his maiden five-wicket haul.
Even that came with frustration for England, with Dhruv Jurel making 90 after being dropped on 59 by Ollie Robinson.
England’s Joe Root (right) fell victim to another marginal DRS call during Sunday’s game
Former England captain Michael Vaughan posted this screenshot of Root’s DRS decision
Replays appeared to show Root was given out despite throwing the ball out of bounds
Ben Duckett was the first English batsman to fall for 15 and Ravi Ashwin then removed Ollie Pope for a golden duck.
Joe Root was the third wicket to fall, but in controversial fashion, with Hawkeye images for India’s review appearing to show the ball being pitched outside leg stump.
Michael Vaughan, former England captain, posted on Hawkeye has an average series. And it’s ready for England’s best player Root.’
The message was later deleted, but Vaughan later questioned why the television coverage did not include many replays of Root’s dismissal.
Vaughan initially tweeted that Hawkeye had a “shocker” before deleting the message
Vaughan then asked why there weren’t more replays of Root’s dismissal on TV
“This is certainly the most important moment of the innings so far, so we should see it many more times… We ask for a friend,” he tweeted. He later posted a selection of the controversial DRS decision.
Things got worse for England when Zak Crawley (60), Stokes and Jonny Bairstow (30) were all dismissed, leaving them in trouble.
