ICC tinkering could blight club cricket

The ICC's latest initiative on the use of technology, especially the move to allow players to challenge decisions by on-field umpires, was put forward last week by its cricket committee. But Angus Fraser, who sits on that committee, wrote in his column in The Independent that he had reservations.

"The biggest fear over the proposed system is the effect it will have on "The Spirit of Cricket", the fabric of the game and the role and authority of the on-field umpire. It will undoubtedly encourage players to challenge the decisions of umpires at lower levels of the game."

He raised one other potential issue:

"Disciplining international players for their reaction to a decision will also be hard because the prospect of appealing gives them the opportunity to hang around for a period of time before walking off."