It has taken barely a fortnight of the 2025 Women’s World Cup for the decision review system (DRS) to become the main talking-point, and not in a good way. The technology is only rolled out in patches across the women’s game, so a few of the officials out here are still finding their feet with the protocols. The result has been a string of messy moments that players, coaches and watchers can’t really ignore.
England v Bangladesh – three lives for Knight
The most obvious wobble came when England chased 179 against Bangladesh in Pallekele. Heather Knight should, by most eyes, have gone for 13 when Shorna Akter dived forward at cover and looked to have scooped the ball cleanly. Knight started the long walk; TV umpire Gayathri Venugopalan pulled her back, ruling the catch “inconclusive”. It was one of three decisions Knight survived – another caught-behind was overturned when the third umpire felt the ball had clipped the pad, not the bat.
“I did the presentation that evening and I put it to Heather Knight, and she did not sit on the fence at all,” Nasser Hussain said on JioStar pressroom. “She said, ‘well, I thought it was out, I was walking off’. There were other lbw reviews as well and Heather said, ‘I’ve never been out so many times in a cricket match.’ She then got 60 or 70 not out [79 not out] to win the game, and that really hurts you.”
Pakistan v India – run-out confusion
Colombo produced a different sort of muddle. Pakistan opener Muneeba Ali was shown “not out” on the big screen for a run-out, only for the graphic to switch to “out” seconds later. TV umpire Kerrin Klaaste had initially checked for lbw, missed the run-out angle, then changed her call after the extra replay arrived. The right outcome was reached, yet the back-and-forth meant Muneeba and captain Fatima Sana felt the need to quiz the fourth umpire on the rope.
India v South Africa – Ultra Edge debate
A couple of nights later, South Africa’s Sune Luus reviewed an lbw. Third umpire Candace la Borde spotted a faint murmur on Ultra Edge and concluded it was an under-edge onto the pad. Side-on footage, though, showed daylight between bat and ball. Luus survived; India frowned.
India v Australia – the Healy catch
DRS got itself tangled again when Sneh Rana dived forward at point to remove Alyssa Healy. Third umpire Jacqueline Williams said, “I can see the ball touching the ground,” then, after another angle, declared the catch clean. Hussain, watching on, was unimpressed. “If you look at these replays enough, if you keep zooming in – I can’t remember where I was, I might have been watching on the telly actually – there was another one of those the fingers and the hands get under the ball,” he said. “The third umpire didn’t ask for 15 different replays.”
Why is this happening?
The women’s circuit still plays plenty of matches without DRS, so some umpires arrive at global events light on match-day experience with the system. Off-field officials need to work through camera angles at speed, line up synchronised replays and marry audio with pictures – simple on a training course, far harder in a full stadium with players waiting. One slip in sequence and the wrong graphic, or even the wrong decision, can pop on the screen.
There is also the age-old question of soft dismissal signals. A low catch looks fair to the naked eye, yet zoom in far enough and blades of grass blur into fingers. Technology was supposed to remove doubt; in practice it sometimes magnifies it.
Next steps
Match referees have already reminded umpires to view every relevant angle before making a call. Extra workshops are pencilled in for the mid-tournament break. Players, for their part, just want consistency. No-one is asking for perfection – everyone accepts errors happen – but the stops, starts and reverse decisions are fraying tempers.
The cricket itself has been compelling, and crowds are healthy. An efficient, calm DRS would help keep the focus there rather than on the third-umpire’s booth.
