Follow McCullum sportsman spirit: Harper tells MS Dhoni

M.S. Dhoni’s criticism of the use of an ear-piece by the umpires has raised a few eyebrows. Former ICC Elite Panel umpire Daryl Harper is not sure whether Dhoni has raised the issue because the appeal was negated by the umpire.

The 64-year-old Harper said, “Obviously having two unimpeded ears to use would be preferable to having only one... but is this a case of calling for action when one bad decision goes against M.S. Dhoni ”

In the fifth over of the match against Pakistan, Khurram Manzoor moved across his stumps and tried to hit Ashish Nehra’s delivery and the ball went pass the wicket-keeper. He could only manage a bit of the bat handle and some glove to Dhoni. The Indian players were quick to appeal but it had no effect on the Bangladeshi umpire Sis Saikat.

“Has he heard about the Decision Review System where a captain can request a review of a disputed decision and the third umpire is utilised to resolve the situation using replays, stump microphones and all forms of technology that will produce the correct result far more often than not ” asked Harper.

“If he’s not happy, I would urge MS to adopt the practice that Brendon McCullum has developed very successfully during his tenure as New Zealand’s captain.

“The Kiwis would have appealed and accepted the umpire’s decision in the time honoured tradition of cricket... whether they were happy with the decision or not,” Harper added.