Real Cricket

Like Ed I have been on cricket tour last week and I must say that I enjoyed it more than I ever thought possible. I found out that I can still bat a bit and was electric in the field (I stood at slip behind Ed when he was keeping wicket and fielded a total of 0 balls).

I am now in the twilight of my career and made the decision in the winter to take up umpiring in order to continue my involvement in the game. To my astonishment I have found that I can umpire (so far) at a far higher level than I thought possible. Having said that, trepidation creeps in when there is a need to make a judgement on LBW or caught behind decisions. At my level and a good deal higher we do not have the benefit of technology and there is always the fear of making the wrong decision.

I have only realised recently the responsibility that is on the umpire to make the right decision because the wrong one can ruin a game for 22 players and, believe me, it is not easy to replay incidents in your mind without the aid of technology.

The point that I am making through my burble is that it is not an easy job and the way to find out is to start umpiring seriously - believe me! At the top level the umpire should be able to make decisions and to defer to technology when unsure. What infuriates me is to see umpires castigated via replays for making the wrong decision when it is marginal and they have given the benefit to the batsman.

Enough from me and I am looking forward to the next time that I open the innings - it is only about 51 weeks away.......