Cricket: Expert eye doubts DRS

India's MS Dhoni.

Poor decisions are the bane of cricket umpires and retired Evan Watkin, in hindsight, wishes players could have challenged some of his with the help of the decision review system.

But not every facet of the dreaded DRS tickles him pink.

"The Hawk-Eye and Virtual Eye decisions are not very good," says Watkin in Hastings after presiding at the crease for a week at the children's annual Riverbend Cricket matches.

While the DRS protocol does help clean up the game he doesn't think it is conclusively gospel.

"If it shows half the ball hitting half of a stump then it's not out.

"The Hawk-Eye cannot predict four to five seconds of the journey of the ball. The ball tends to slow down and swing more."

Sometimes, Watkin says, the Hawk-Eye shows the ball hitting a stump but white coats in the best seat in the park know "no way".

The DRS requires human input from the moment the ball is in flight and even the structure has its share of flaws during the setting up phase.

He recalls the 2011 ICC World Cup in India when the system was set up incorrectly to display the ball bouncing more than it should be.

"It's highly questionable," he says, adding the officials who set up the system apologised to the minnows at the cup playing against India because the underdogs' top batsman had come under scrutiny while batting.

"When play resumed Dhoni was asking if it was a rubber ball," he says with a chuckle, adding India captain MS Dhoni certainly packs a sense of humour.