Tanaka Chivanga of Zimbabwe celebrates bowling Wiaan Mulder of South Africa LBW during a warm up match between South Africa and Zimbabwe ahead of the ICC World Test Championship Final 2025 on June 04, 2025 in Arundel, England

The first Test between Zimbabwe and South Africa in Bulawayo is being played without DRS. Here’s why.

South Africa are touring Zimbabwe to play Test cricket for the first time since 2014, when they won a one-off Test by nine wickets.

The series this time around features a new-look squad for the Proteas, seemingly experimenting after their 2025 World Test Championship final victory at Lord’s. South Africa are fielded three debutants – Dewald Brevis, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, and Codi Yusuf – making seven changes to their XI from Lord's, with Keshav Maharaj captaining in place of injured regular skipper Temba Bavuma.

Meanwhile, Zimbabwe, after a prolonged winless streak, achieved a significant breakthrough by beating Bangladesh away in Sylhet earlier this year – their first Test win since 2021.

DRS has become standard in almost all top-level men's international cricket. However, its absence in the Zimbabwe-South Africa series opener – a fixture between two Full Member nations – makes it a notable exception. Without DRS, neither team can challenge the umpire’s decisions.

Why doesn't the Zimbabwe-South Africa Test series opener have DRS?

The Decision Review System (DRS) made its long-awaited debut in Zimbabwe during the second Test of their 2016 series against Sri Lanka. While Zimbabwean cricket authorities have never objected to the system in principle, the high operational costs delayed its rollout in the country. However, after a series of poor umpiring decisions in earlier matches, coupled with pressure from overseas broadcasters, Zimbabwe finally embraced it.

Nearly nine years after its debut in Zimbabwe, DRS technology remains inconsistently implemented in the country. The one-off Test against Ireland in February 2025 – Zimbabwe’s most recent home fixture – also lacked the system. Even global tournaments held in Zimbabwe, such as the 2023 World Cup Qualifier (which determined the final two spots for the main event), operated without DRS. Earlier, the 2019 edition’s qualifier matches in Zimbabwe faced the same fate due to financial constraints.

Similarly, Cricket South Africa (CSA) cited insufficient "resources" when the standalone Test match on England Women’s tour of South Africa was played without DRS, despite the technology being used in the six white-ball games that preceded it.

Have there been other reasons for DRS absence in cricket?

Yes, during the recent PSL 2025 season, the tournament was postponed after an armed conflict erupted between Pakistan and India. Though play resumed following the ceasefire declaration, the remaining matches were played without DRS after Hawk-Eye's technology team chose not to return to the country.

Also read: 'No reviews in this game' - PSL captain controversially given out in final with DRS not available

Notably, the three-match Pakistan-Bangladesh T20I series that followed also lacked DRS; however, it was reportedly due to cost constraints.

Follow Wisden for all cricket updates, including live scores, match stats, quizzes and more. Stay up to date with the latest cricket news, player updates, team standings, match highlights, video analysis and live match odds.