Cricket: Solution found for review hiccup

Corey Anderson of New Zealand celebrates taking the wicket of Mahela Jayawardene. Photo / Getty Images

Confusion over the use of cricket's Decision Review System means Martin Guptill has 22 bonus runs in his one-day international career.

Animated Research Limited boss Ian Taylor said Sunday's 13-over DRS malfunction during the ODI between New Zealand and Sri Lanka was because of a lack of pictures not a lack of technology.

Taylor's company is responsible for the Virtual Eye software used by Sky Sport to determine whether a ball is tracking to hit the stumps on lbw reviews.

He confirmed Sri Lanka's appeal for a review in the fourth over when New Zealand was 10 for one would have been upheld and the on-field decision overturned, meaning Guptill would have made six, not 28. New Zealand won the match by 120 runs and took out the series.

Pictures weren't available but Taylor said the graphics could have been used independently.

"It is actually how the system worked in the early days.

"The problem was that the current DRS protocol did not specifically deal with this issue and there was no one at the venue authorised to go with the 'graphics only' solution.

"That is something we will be working through with the match referee in Wellington when we meet tomorrow."

The tracking graphics are overlaid on the live broadcast camera shooting down the wicket. The faulty camera was not part of the tracking system and does not affect the validity of the tracking.

The Hawkeye system rather than Virtual Eye will be used in the World Cup but Taylor has since addressed the problem with the International Cricket Council's general manager of cricket Geoff Allardice.

"The trouble is the rules [in that circumstance] are not written down anywhere and, in the panic of the moment, the knowledge got lost. It would have been terrible if it had changed the result. Discussions are under way at ICC level on how to solve it."

Taylor's solution is that television umpires need to be accredited to use the technology, rather than just relying on umpiring knowledge.

"It's a specialist job. For every lbw, our staff know within about 10 seconds whether it is in or out.

"It's precision technology measuring balls being delivered in excess of 150km/h.

"If the umpires were part of the team they could authorise optimum camera placements too."

The producer of Sky Television's cricket coverage, Alan Henderson, informed the television umpire Rod Tucker and match referee Javagal Srinath prior to the players taking the field.

"It's the first time I can remember that happening, so it's uncommon," Henderson said.

"I have no idea what the picture [quality] was like.

"I was just informed by the technicians that the camera was not working."