Post by stevepitts on Aug 30, 2013 7:37:45 GMT
From the point of view of a player I would have to say that I only notice where the umpire is when giving me guard if they are 'off the line' between the stumps, and therefore I suspect that in practical terms most players are going to neither notice nor care.
As an umpire I do not step up to the stumps to give guard but if a batter asks whilst I am not in my normal position (eg. whilst completing my note taking between overs, or collecting a bowler's cap) then I will simply get into line with the stumps, either closer than normal or further away, and fulfill their request.
From the context of Acumen's original question I guess the underlying issue is whether, as an assessor, it is reasonable to raise this as a 'point of best practice'. I suspect that for many it is a habit, and like sillypoint they would never have considered the possible implications of certain interpretations of that action. I would argue that is worth raising, since we all get into habits that aren't necessarily good ones, but probably not worthy of any significant 'marking down'.
As an umpire I do not step up to the stumps to give guard but if a batter asks whilst I am not in my normal position (eg. whilst completing my note taking between overs, or collecting a bowler's cap) then I will simply get into line with the stumps, either closer than normal or further away, and fulfill their request.
From the context of Acumen's original question I guess the underlying issue is whether, as an assessor, it is reasonable to raise this as a 'point of best practice'. I suspect that for many it is a habit, and like sillypoint they would never have considered the possible implications of certain interpretations of that action. I would argue that is worth raising, since we all get into habits that aren't necessarily good ones, but probably not worthy of any significant 'marking down'.