New DRS rule for lbws is great news for bowlers
The new DRS protocol for reviewing not-out lbw decisions came into effect on September 22. Life is going to get harder for batsmen, and here's why
More batsmen are likely to be given lbw when the fielding captain asks for a not-out decision to be referred to the third umpire, under the new DRS protocol.
Because the amount of protection given to the on-field umpire's decision - 'the umpire's call' - has been reduced. So the fielding team has a greater chance of getting a 'not-out' changed to an 'out'.
The zone in which more than half the ball must hit the pad for not-out decisions to be overturned has been increased. And the zone in which the ball-tracking projection needed to show more than half the ball hitting the stumps has also been increased. So the bowlers have a larger area in their favour, and batsmen - as well as the on-field umpires' decisions - are less protected than before.
Previously, for not-out decisions to be overturned, more than half the ball needed to hit the pad in line with a zone between the middle of off stump and the middle of leg stump, and from the bottom of the bails downwards. Now, the zone is between the outside of off stump and the outside of leg stump. The bottom-of-the bails limit has not changed.
Under the previous DRS conditions, for a not-out lbw decision to be overturned, the ball needed to have hit the pad well in line with the stumps and the projection needed to show the ball pretty much crashing into the stumps. Now, for such decisions to be overturned, more than half the ball still needs to hit the pad in line with the stumps, but not as much as before, and more than half the ball still needs to hit the stumps, but not as centrally as before.