In India's first ODI against New Zealand at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Wednesday, all-rounder Hardik Pandya's dismissal caused quite a stir among former cricketers. The dismissal occurred in the 40th over of India's innings, when Hardik attempted to cut a delivery from Daryl Mitchell through third man, but his off-stump bail was dislodged as the ball passed extremely close to the stumps. The on-field umpires referred the call to TV umpire K Ananthapadmanabhan for further review.
Replays showed that wicketkeeper, New Zealand skipper Tom Latham, was standing up to the stumps and had his gloves very close to the bails, which looked to light up just after the ball had passed over the top of the stumps and was cleanly collected by the keeper. The TV umpire tried to check whether Latham's gloves were behind the stumps before he collected the ball, which was the case, so it was a legal delivery. However, the TV umpire was not entirely satisfied that there was no conclusive evidence that the bail had been dislodged by the wicketkeeper's gloves, which left many dissatisfied.
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri, who was on English commentary duties at the time of Hardik's dismissal, wasn't entirely convinced about the decision. "Oh, it's been given out! Daryl Mitchell should be happy. Should really be happy, because that, if you take a look again as to where the keeper's gloves are, where the ball is as it passes the stumps, it looked as if the ball was at least an inch, inch-and-a-half above the stumps." "Ball clearly looks to be above the bail. You can see as it goes past into the gloves, there's no red light, it's only after that. There you go. From that angle, you can see that the gloves are closer to the bails than the ball," Shastri said.
Former India opener Wasim Jaffer also weighed in on the controversy, tweeting, "1. Clear gap between ball and bails. 2. Ball is inside gloves, bails not lit yet. 3. Bails lit after brush from gloves. Hardik robbed there."
The dismissal caused more drama in the next over, when Shubman Gill cut off Michael Bracewell for two runs and the bails fell on the ground. This time it was clearly evident that the bails had come off following a contact made by Latham's gloves. This further raised questions about the legality of Hardik's dismissal, as some felt that it should have been called a no-ball instead.
Despite the controversial dismissal, Hardik had to walk back to the pavilion after making 28 off 38 balls, ending a partnership of 74 for the fifth wicket with Shubman Gill. Gill went on to score his maiden double-century in ODIs through a 149-ball 208 and power India to a massive total of 349/8 in 50 overs. The incident raises questions about the technology used in cricket and the need for more accuracy in decision making, especially when it comes to the dismissal of a player. With the advent of new technologies, it is imperative that cricket adapts to these changes to ensure fair play and a level playing field for all teams.