'It is time to use technology to the full extent'

Clive Lloyd has called for increased use of technology to help umpires in decision-making. Delivering the Colin Cowdrey Spirit of Cricket lecture at Lord's, Lloyd suggested that umpires should be given the same aids that television offers its viewers.

"How can it be right to ask an umpire to take a split-second decision based on his own eyesight and hearing while everyone else then judges that decision having made use of technology designed for the purpose?

"It is time to use technology to the full extent," Lloyd added. "Umpires should be able to defer to the precision of Hawk-Eye, particularly in determining whether a batsman is lbw, whether there has been a bat-pad catch, and whether a batsman is caught behind the wicket where there's dispute over whether the ball has or has not been played."

Currently, technology is being used only for line decisions, and to help the on-field umpires with controversial catches taken close to the turf. There have been suggestions to allow both teams a certain number of appeals per day against decisions made by on-field umpires, and Lloyd, currently among the ICC's panel of match referees, felt that would be the right way to use technology. "I know there are problems about the time this will take," Lloyd said, "especially if a team is inclined to excessive appealing. But it should be possible to design restrictions on appealing to the use of technology, monitored by the referee."

The other issue that Lloyd was concerned about was the domination of the game by a few countries, leading to more and more no-contests. "World cricket must decide whether it is to consist of occasional riveting battles between three or four super cricket nations like Australia, England and South Africa and one-sided, poorly-attended intervening series between the strong and the weak, or whether it's prepared to do what is necessary to build up the number of competitive Test-playing nations."

The solution, he said, lay in spreading the funds to the lesser nations, so that they could build sufficient infrastructure. "The ICC should effect and oversee the equitable distribution of funds between developed and under-developed countries. Currently, countries such as my own West Indies are seriously disadvantaged and, as a result, infrastructure development and player development are falling behind.

"Despite individual exceptions, for sometimes great human character or talent overcomes all obstacles, there is a correlation between national economies and the performance of their sportsmen and women - it's inevitable. It means the strong helping the weak and if they do, they will strengthen the whole international game. If they don't, three or four countries will end up endlessly playing themselves - and everyone will lose patience with that."