TV umpire Adrian Holdstock came under heavy criticism on day two of the West Indies-Australia Test in Barbados after judging Roston Chase out lbw despite what looked like a deviation off the bat.
The first West Indies-Australia Test has already seen several controversial umpiring calls. Travis Head had a reprieve early on day one after a caught behind appeal was turned down with the TV umpire ruling that there wasn't enough evidence to conclude that the ball had carried. Roston Chase then got a life early on day two after the TV umpire ruled bat first and overruled the on-field out call for an lbw despite replays suggesting the ball might have hit the pad first.
Perhaps the most controversial call came in the 50th over of the West Indies innings when the on-field decision of out was upheld against Chase. Pat Cummins bowled a back of length ball that stayed a touch low and deceived the West Indies captain. He went up for a review immediately.
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The audio and video felt out of sync during the replay as Ultra Edge showed irregular but inconclusive spikes throughout. Holdstock felt there was a gap between bat and ball and concluded that no bat was involved. The ball tracking then showed three reds and Chase was dismissed for 44 off 108 balls in his first innings as Test captain.
The decision, however, was not receieved well by pundits and fans. Ian Bishop, commentating on the game, felt there was a "clear deviation" as the ball passed the bat and was scathing in his reaction.
"I disagree with the decision, I disagree with the technology, I thought he hit that but somehow, it's worked against Roston Chase," Bishop said.
"I feel sorry for the officiating team there, in my view that should clearly have been not out. I apologise to the officials, but I'm in total disagreement, as he [Chase] is in bewilderment. You see a deflection, a change of direction of the ball as it approaches the bat.
"If you've watched the game for long enough, you can see it. If you're new to the game, maybe you don't notice it."
Following Chase's wicket, Shai Hope's dismissal also had an element of controversy to it as he was out caught behind. Replays suggested the ball might have touched the surface as Alex Carey was on his way down after completing the catch.
At the time of writing, West Indies were 170-8, trailing Australia by 10 runs.
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