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Hussain, Atherton explode on commentary after England join India in ball-change controversy: 'Keep players out of it'
Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton criticised umpires for managing the ball in the India vs England Test series, stating that players should be kept out of it.
Former England captains Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton have had enough of the ball-change controversy in the ongoing India vs England Test series. The Dukes ball has come under scrutiny after players from both sides expressed their dissatisfaction, complaining that it goes out of shape very quickly. India captain Shubman Gill and fast bowler Mohammed Siraj were heavily criticised for requesting a ball change, which had gone out of shape but was doing a lot for India's fast bowlers in the first session of Day 2. Gill and Siraj were furious with the umpires as they felt the replacement ball was not as new as the original one. The less movement backed their argument. As a result, Jamie Smith and Brydon Carse hit attacking fifties in a lower-order resurgence from England that helped them go to 387 despite being seven down for 281 at one stage.
On Day 3, it was England's turn to put the pressure right back on the umpires. England, in fact, had started complaining about the ball towards the end of Day 2 itself, but they really pumped it up in the first session on Saturday. The umpires agreed to do a test after Jofra Archer complained about the ball in the 46th over. Umpire Sharafuddoula brought out the rings. The ball did go through it safely and Archer was asked to carry on with it even though he didn't seem pleased with it.
Hussain, Atherton let it rip as England join ball-change controversy
Atherton and Hussain were in the commentary box when this happened. Both of them were fed up with how the umpires were managing the game on the field.
"Here you go Ath, just to wind you up," said Hussain.
"We were chatting an hour before the start of play, which is when Williamson's masterclass was going on. I think we both agreed that this should be the umpire's domain. The umpires are the ones who should determine whether the ball is fit to play. Keep the players out of it," replied Atherton.
"Absolutely! They've got the rings in their pockets. A wicket or a drinks break, you check the ball. Take the players completely out of it. The players are trying to get the ball changed because this one is doing nothing," Hussain added.
Both Atherton and Hussain said something similar on Friday when Indian players were going after the umpire for not providing them with a newer ball.
“The ball was doing everything this morning. The ball they had, for 63 deliveries, was zipping round corners. Bumrah was going through a magic spell. Siraj at the other hand was having catches dropped. The ball carried through to the wicketkeeper. It was doing everything. It was doing more than at any stage in the Test match. I cannot work out why you’d want to change a ball that was doing this much, sixty-three deliveries of the ball zipping round,” Hussain said.
The ball going out of shape has been a recurring problem in this series. There have been multiple stoppages and complains from India and England players. Before the start of the third Test, Ben Stokes and Rishabh Pant went public with their criticism about the Dukes ball.
Dilip Jajodia, the owner of British Cricket Balls Ltd., who manufactures the Dukes cricket ball, defended their product. "This (the ball going out of shape and getting softer) is not something unusual; it's been happening ever since cricket has been played. Not everything is static; it's not an engineered product in that sense,” he told Hindustan Times at Lord's.
Jajodia added that improved bats and the harder, flatter pitches being used for the last few years for Tests in England also influence the character of the ball. “The balls are being hit harder, further, and therefore impacting things like pillars and seats and so on. All these have an impact on the ball. When you look at any ball objectively, it's a small round object and it's been battered all day. To expect that to be perfectly in shape all day is an impossibility. It can't be done, nobody can do it."
