The International Cricket Council has drawn flak from former cricketers Darren Lehmann of Australia and England all rounder Derek Pringle
for considering umpires' nationality over their "excellence" in big
games like World Cup final.
The duo believe the ICC must move beyond parochialism
and mistrust that forced the introduction of "neutral" umpires, who
were responsible for the farcical finish to last week's World Cup final.
Lehmann, the Australian Cricketers Association president,
said the gaffe could have been avoided if Simon Taufel, the ICC's umpire
of the year for the past three seasons, had officiated the final between Australia
and Sri Lanka.
Taufel was not considered for the final because he is an Australian and the
ICC uses neutral umpires in ODIs.
"I have a view that the best umpires should umpire the
best games regardless of what country they're from because they'll do the best
job," Lehmann said.
"If there are two Sri Lankans who are the best umpires,
then so be it; they umpire the final between Australia and Sri Lanka,"
he was quoted as saying by 'The Australian'.
"The finish was a farce, (with officials) not knowing the laws. Having
five officials involved, it's not good enough. Thankfully it didn't affect the
game at all. If it affected the result, it would be a big issue," he added.
Pringle said the final mess raises questions over ICC's policy
of choosing umpires from its elite panel and Taufel's absence from the final
was "nonsense".
"Neutrality should not be an issue when you are pursuing
excellence," Pringle
|
