Australian players question ICC over DRS inconsistencies

Starc led Australia’s concerns over DRS standards after both, Australia and England expressed frustration with several decisions involving Real Time Snicko (RTS), with tensions boiling over during the recently concluded Adelaide Test.

IMAGE: Starc led Australia’s concerns over DRS standards after both, Australia and England expressed frustration with several decisions involving Real Time Snicko (RTS), with tensions boiling over during the recently concluded Adelaide Test. Photograph: Asanka Brendon Ratnayake/Reuters

Australian left-arm speedster Mitchell Starc has questioned the International Cricket Council (ICC) over not paying for the DRS technology in international cricket.

Starc believes that the ICC should use a single DRS provider across all matches to avoid inconsistencies in umpire decision-making. Starc's comments came after the ongoing DRS controversy in the Ashes series.

In the ongoing Ashes series, Australia and England expressed frustration with several decisions involving Real Time Snicko (RTS), with tensions boiling over during the recently concluded Adelaide Test.

During Australia's first innings, England's review was reinstated by the ICC after the supplier of Snicko technology admitted an operator error that cost the visitors the wicket of wicketkeeper-batter Alex Carey during his opening-day century at the Adelaide Test.

Another incident happened during the third Test, when Starc was heard on the stump mic saying, 'Snicko needs to be sacked'.

The England and Wales Cricket Board and Cricket Australia planned to lobby the ICC to review its protocols and systems after the error that led to host broadcasters having to pay for the technology, which is set to be a key discussion point.

Third umpire Chris Gaffaney instructed on-field umpire Nitin Menon to give Jamie Smith out after a spike on Snicko indicated a noise even though there was no clear image of ball touching bat on the video replay during England's first innings during the 3rd Ashes Test in Adelaide on Thursday

IMAGE: Third umpire Chris Gaffaney instructed on-field umpire Nitin Menon to give Jamie Smith out after a spike on Snicko indicated a noise even though there was no clear image of ball touching bat on the video replay during England's first innings during the 3rd Ashes Test in Adelaide on Thursday. Photograph: Paul Childs /Reuters

However, Australian pacer Starc believed the process needs to be centralised.

"I'm sure it's frustrating for everyone, viewers, officials, broadcasters no doubt," Starc said.

"One thing I will say ... I'm only going to speak for myself here, the officials use it, right? So why doesn't the ICC pay for it? And why is it not just one [provider] across the board? Why don't we use the same technology in all different series that's going to perhaps create less confusion, less frustration? So that's where I'll leave that," Starc added.

Meanwhile, Australian captain Pat Cummins also commented on the DRS controversy, noting that RTS appeared to be different from UltraEdge.

"The one here seems a little bit different to sometimes what you get overseas," Cummins said.

"There's always a few murmurs. You're hoping that it matches up if you're the bowling team. Sometimes you kind of just making sure that it's all okay if you're batting, even though you feel like you haven't hit it. It sometimes doesn't feel super consistent, but you just crack on whatever the umpire says," Cummins said.