Technology saved Tendulkar in World Cup semi-final against Pakistan, stresses former spinner and umpire Maninder Singh

Former India spinner and first-class umpire Maninder Singh has supported International Cricket Council's (ICC) decision to do away with the Hawk-Eye ball-tracking technology at its annual conference in Hong Kong yesterday.



Hawk-Eye, popularly opposed by Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Sachin Tendulkar, was first introduced during an England-Pakistan Test in 2001 by Channel 4, and always had its share of doubters, not just in cricket, but also tennis. During the Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal Wimbledon final in 2008, there was a contentious line call that attracted the media's wrath.

More recently, during the World Cup semi-final between India and Pakistan, Tendulkar was adjudged lbw off Saeed Ajmal - the latter plumb to the naked eye. Tendulkar called for a review - and based on Hawk-Eye's track, the decision was overturned.

"It's a very sensible decision, should have happened long time back. It's difficult to judge the bounce of a pitch in the same vein for different countries. I am happy they have eliminated the Hawk-Eye. The mat can be used to find out accurately where the ball has pitched, but not sufficient to adjudge if it would hit the stumps," Maninder told MiD DAY.

Maninder, who felt lbw decisions shouldn't go to the TV umpire, said Tendulkar should have been given out at Mohali. "He (Tendulkar) was clearly out. But, India had to win the World Cup. We were lucky to win the tournament for the second time," he joked.

Former ICC Elite Panel umpire and India captain, Srinivas Venkataraghavan, who is also director of Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) umpires' sub-committee, recently explained the flaws of the Hawk-Eye.

"You can see the fallout of the ball tracking technology in the recent World Cup. If you have seen the World Cup matches you would yourself know; I don't have to say anything. You can see the percentage of the number of correct decisions (challenges) taken by the players," he said.