Channel 9 to use Hot Spot, Hawk Eye for Australia-India series

UDRS will not be used when India will clash with Australia in the upcoming Test series but Channel 9, the official broadcaster, has decided to stick to technology such as Hot Spot and Eagle Eye for the sake of TV viewers.

Team India’s Australia tour starts from December 26 © Getty Images

Melbourne: Oct 25, 2011

UDRS will not be used when India will clash with Australia in the upcoming Test series but Channel 9, the official broadcaster, has decided to stick to technology such as Hot Spot and Eagle Eye for the sake of TV viewers.

The Indian cricket board had ruled out using the Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS) in Australia as it feels that the ball-tracking tool is not accurate enough.

In fact, UDRS was not used in India’s series against Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

Under the rules, the DRS system need the approval of both teams in a bilateral series.

However, Channel 9 said despite India’s reservation for the technology, they will use it for the millions of cricket viewers this summer.

“India have got something against the DRS and that goes back a long way. But Hot Spot and Eagle Eye are part of what we do for viewers. If India don’t agree to use them for decision making it is no skin off our nose, it doesn’t affect us. We will push on,” Nine director of sport Steve Crawley told ‘Courier Mail.

“The technology is improving every year. Eagle Eye now has a lot more frames per second and that technology is better than it has ever been,” he added.

Channel 9 is planning to use Hot Spot, Eagle Eye and other ball-tracking devices during the four-Test series which gets underway from on the Boxing Day at the MCG.

India’s last tour of Australia in 2007-08 was marred by some contentious umpiring decisions at the SCG Test. India had been at the receiving end of the UDRS many times, the recent being during their tour of England in August-September when they faced several incorrect decisions. (PTI)