Former international judge calls David Warner a selfish ‘crybaby’ after Australian match opener suggested displaying match officials’ stats on big screens, aiming to hold them accountable for decisions. Believe it or not, referee Joel Wilson gave him LBW early in the Australian Championship. Cricket World Cup launch the chase against Sri Lanka on Monday – a verdict upheld by third umpire Chris Brown – Warner spoke out the next day about his disappointment at the alleged inconsistencies.
He believes that displaying the referee’s readings on the scoreboard will help keep them under control. “The players’ stats go up on the board when you come out to bat,” Warner said.
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“When they announce the judges, I would like to see their stats on the board as well. The NRL does it. I think the NFL does that. The audience is also pleased to see this.
“You see it with the bunkers in the NRL. You get an absolute abomination and some (refs) don’t (refs) in the next game.
“There has to be some accountability. If you make a bad decision, just accept it and apologize. Players won’t bite your head off. The judges won’t bite your head off if you ask them this question. They’re generally pretty honest.”
Legendary referee’s brutal blow to ‘selfish’ David Warner
But Darrell Hare, who has umpired more than 200 international matches and famously failed to score a single goal against Sri Lankan great Muttiah Muralitharan in 1995, criticized the veteran opener’s performance. Speaking to Yahoo Sport Australia, Hare asked: “Would Warner like his decision-making stats on screen too?
“How many times has he wasted review out of sheer selfishness to try to survive? How many times has he succeeded?
“My guess is that it will be much less than the well-documented 96% correct decisions made by umpires in international cricket. Warner’s selfishness and whiny attitude shouldn’t matter.”
Hare has called cricket umpiring “the toughest job in world sport” but admits quality has declined at international level and the gap between the best match officials and the rest has widened. He also accused the International Cricket Council of muddying the waters regarding third umpires.
“The monster created by the ICC review system has changed the way ‘correct’ decisions are explained,” Hare said. “There is still a problem where the same ball, just clipping the top of the leg stump, gets out or doesn’t get out, and both are true.
“In the international arena there is no benefit of the doubt if you are extradited, but there is benefit if you are not extradited. I think the problem is deeper than Warner’s problems.”
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