Teams selecting umpires

[Lillian Thomson]

Now that India have successfully removed Bucknor from the Perth Test they've set a potentially dangerous precident. In the future how can they turn down another team who protest about a certain umpire? You might as well let the players pick the umpires they're happy with before a series starts - although Simon Taufel would end up a very busy man. If a visiting team is happy with a home umpire they should use them. I'd be more than happy to see Taufel umpiring an Ashes Test against England rather than a lesser umpire who just happens to be from a neutral Country.

 

[JASON]

It is quite clear certain umpires do not relate well with certain Teams...SL had problems with Hair and Harper , although Harper earned the wrath of the English rather than Sri Lankans in the recent Test series v England. Then of course Koertzen...

To me Billy Bowden and Aleem Dar appear to be the most likely busiest Umpires followed by Taufel.

 

[Mister Wright]

I actually don't mind teams selecting their umpires, but who gets first preference on choice of umpires?

 

[Captain Cricket]

Wouldn't seem too appropriate and professional for teams to be picking umpires. If a team thinks an umpire is not up to scratch then they shouldn't be umpiring if the ICC see it the same way - simple as that. Stay with the current system. Simon Taufel would clearly have to be the best umpire in the world.

 

[sledger]

Teams selecting Umpires should never happen imo, just a very bad idea, the fact that Bucknor has been removed is perhaps understandable given the circumstances, but to let teams actually choose which umpires they would and would not like to have is absurd.

For example were england to play India and Michael Vaughan demand Bucknor to be selected as umpire would create uproar.

 

[Craig]

I hope this never happens. It will be a bad day for cricket IMO.

 

[duffer]

The only team with the clout to stage a succesful protest is India. Other teams would stand to lose too much if their bluff is called.

 

[vic_orthdox]

The only team with the clout to stage a succesful protest is India. Other teams would stand to lose too much if their bluff is called.

Or if you get India's support.

 

[Mister Wright]

Could be a case of each side puttin forward their three preferred umpires for a given series. Always up to the ICC to decide, but can't be a bad thing if the umpires chosen for the series are preferred by both sides.

 

[Richard]

I'd be more than happy to see Taufel umpiring an Ashes Test against England rather than a lesser umpire who just happens to be from a neutral Country.

Until he makes a crucial error that favours Australia and people accuse him (almost certainly wrongly, but that's the way it goes) of bias and all hell breaks loose.

Independent Umpires are there for a reason.

Either way, it's probably for the best that Bucknor has been stood down from the WACA Test as serious problems might have resulted had he stood and managed to make more errors (something which certainly couldn't be counted-out) but obviously there's the danger of a bad precedent.

I don't have a problem with some element of players picking Umpires, though - it's always happened to some extent in all cricket, and distrust between players and Umpires is always going to have catastrophic effects.

 

[Lillian Thomson]

Until he makes a crucial error that favours Australia and people accuse him (almost certainly wrongly, but that's the way it goes) of bias and all hell breaks loose.

There's no "until" attached to it. I just said "I'd be happy" and I still would be even if he did make a mistake. Ask most England players, journalists or followers whether they'd prefer Taufel or Rudi Koertzen to umpire an Ashes Test and they'd say Taufel. If the captains have agreed on their joint preferred umpires then there would be no screaming of bias. It's not going to happen anyway as some umpires would be quickly unemployed.

Independent Umpires are there for a reason.

They are there for a reason.........to prevent accusations of bias..........doesn't seem to work though does it.......

 

[silentstriker]

In this instance, it was a good idea. Bucknor should not umpire another Test - any Test, not just Indian ones.

 

[Richard]

There's no "until" attached to it. I just said "I'd be happy" and I still would be even if he did make a mistake. Ask most England players, journalists or followers whether they'd prefer Taufel or Rudi Koertzen to umpire an Ashes Test and they'd say Taufel. If the captains have agreed on their joint preferred umpires then there would be no screaming of bias. It's not going to happen anyway as some umpires would be quickly unemployed.

So you'd be (and most England supporters would be) happy if half the country was screaming bias as the reason we'd lost The Ashes? (Which they would be, and it'd be fruitless to deny it, if Taufel were to make a crucial error) ITSTL.

They are there for a reason.........to prevent accusations of bias..........doesn't seem to work though does it.......

It works a damn sight better than home Umpires did. At least this way it crops-up only twice every 6 years, rather than practically every series.

 

[Richard]

In this instance, it was a good idea. Bucknor should not umpire another Test - any Test, not just Indian ones.

It's a crying shame, in fact, that he did not Umpire his last game in WC2007.

 

[Lillian Thomson]

So you'd be (and most England supporters would be) happy if half the country was screaming bias as the reason we'd lost The Ashes? (Which they would be, and it'd be fruitless to deny it, if Taufel were to make a crucial error) ITSTL.

What's half the Country screaming got to do with anything?
I said I would be happy for Simon Taufel to umpire an Ashes Test and still would be even if he made a mistake. I also said "most" supporters if given the choice would rather have Taufel umpiring than Koetzen - which is true.
If "half the Country" want to call Taufel a cheat I'm not remotely interested, they're probably somewhere away with the fairies in the next field to you.

 

[bond21]

ask any team and they will say they want Taufel, which wont happen because series are played at the same time all around the world, so who gets precedent?

Rudi would be my 2nd choice, then probably Aleem Dar.

Why dont they just have 2 home and 1 away umpire, like if England played Australia have Taufel and Benson umpiring....

Pretty sure they wouldnt be bias, theyre paid at least one hundred thousand a year im pretty sure. If they were obviously bias they would be gone straight away.

 

[Johnners]

Rudi is almost as bad as Buchnor imo

 

[Richard]

What's half the Country screaming got to do with anything?
I said I would be happy for Simon Taufel to umpire an Ashes Test and still would be even if he made a mistake. I also said "most" supporters if given the choice would rather have Taufel umpiring than Koetzen - which is true.
If "half the Country" want to call Taufel a cheat I'm not remotely interested, they're probably somewhere away with the fairies in the next field to you.

If you're not remotely interested in half the country saying this and that it's you that's away with the fairies, really.

Incidents of that kind taint the game. The last few days demonstrate that aptly enough.

 

[Lillian Thomson]

If you're not remotely interested in half the country saying this and that it's you that's away with the fairies, really.

Incidents of that kind taint the game. The last few days demonstrate that aptly enough.

The fact that you think it would it happen at all leaves you in la la land. The number of people who would seriously accuse Taufel of cheating is very small and those that do obviously doesn't follow cricket very closely, probably spend too much time reading books.

 

[NUFAN]

Bucknor has had a brilliant umpiring career. Hope he gets back into form.