New Umpire - Bad Decision

[gtownsend]

I am newly qualified and umpired my 2nd match this Saturday. During this game I gave a batsman out caught behind, there was a only a minor appeal but for some reason I found myself raising the finger to return him to the pavilion. The batsmen was very unhappy and I am sure that he didn't hit the ball.

Would it have been acceptable for me to revoke my decision? Law 27.9 or in these instances is it best to accept that you have made a mistake and move on to focusing on the next delivery?

We are human after all, but apart from that incident the rest of the game went really well, so I am annoyed with myself.

Thanks

Guy

[swerveman]

Move on, Guy. Don't beat yourself up for a bad decision, learn from it.

[mrsinghIndia]

These things will happen from time to time.
You will not be right all the time. You must learn to accept that a certain percentage of your decisions will be wrong. Watch and work to keep this percentage down to a minimum. Keep a list of your wrong decisions and try to identify a pattern, which will help to ascertain possible reasons for making a particular kind of error (Say, caught-behind)
Yes. It must hurt you to make a bad decision. It must annoy you. But try to put it behind you. (Admittedly, easier said than done) But this is part of your ethos in trying to become a good umpire. A good umpire moves on and tries to build on the bad decision. This is. for him, the true test.
At such times, I would suggest, try to gear up mentally. Try to say things like ' Watch the ball' to bring your focus back.
While the Laws allow you to repleal your decision, it is a tough call. What would be wrong is that, in the particular case, it would be after remonstration by the batsman. A repealed decision can shake you to the roots and does require enormous moral fibre even after the repealing is done. It can shake you to the core.
Furthermore, most players would like to see an umpire give his decisions consistently, relying on what he has seen and heard and sticking to his convictions.
The odd mistake is accepted, forgiven and forgotten, as I am sure, in your case it already is. :o)

[jaybee]

All good advice. The man who never made a mistake never did anything.

Forgiving yourself and putting it behind you is possibly the hardest thing to do. If you're too tense and trying too hard you're more likely to make a mistake than if you relax a bit (but not too much ). Take a deep breath and carry on.

Always try to take a few moments before raising the finger or saying 'not out' - even in the obvious cases. Players appreciate an umpire who allows a short time to replay things in his mind and doing this shows that you are in control of yourself. It then follows that you're almost certain to be in control of the game.

[ankush94]

A textbook case of ISDE : Involuntary Skyward Digital Extension Syndrome."

In simple words, it means "I don't have a clue why my finger went up."

ISDE = Daydreaming. Decreases with experience.

ISDE = Boring game + Heavy Eyelids + Sudden, Loud, Synchronized Appeal.

Famous names to suffer from this syndrome : Asoka De Silva, Ian Robinson.

[mrsinghIndia]

ISDE : Involuntary Skyward Digital Extension Syndrome." That's rich.
Good one ankush94. There a lot many suffer from this syndrome, really. Something to be worked at to avoid.

Also, it is when the game is boring and the eyelids droop that an incident happens. I advocate being aware ofit and conciously picking yourself up, ready for just such an eventuality.

It is generally towards late evening that the game slows down. I always recommend The '4pm push' to budding umpires. It helps to practice this.

Jaybee makes a good point about 'Pause before Decision'.
But, again, not too long or one is seen as being indecisive & the existence of doubt is presumed and folks speak of not having given the batsman the 'benefit of the doubt'.

[topumpire1]

Yes Jaybee, always take your time over decisions. Far better you wait (& see from batsmens reaction) before raising the finger. If a batsman knows he has touched the ball & doesn't walk, he will often look sheepish, if he KNOWS he didn't touch the ball, his reaction will show you. It is hoped that in the spirit of the game, written in the preamble, the will walk if he knows he's hit it, so waiting (& possibly a little nod) will make him walk. With experience of players, you can soon know those that will walk if they hit the ball & those who will not & you can adjust your thinking accordingly

[mrsinghIndia]

With respect, I would like to state that the reason given by topumpire1 for taking time before giving a decision is wrong, to my mind. Watching for a reaction from the batsman or anyone else, for that matter, is hardly part of it. The 'pause' allows you to appear to have given due consideration and doesn't make you look 'trigger-happy'. I must admit to have been saved from a wrong decision by a batsman walking when I was not sure of his being out.
My experience with players at all levels is that they are past masters at trying to mislead the umpire and will do so without any guilt whatsoever. Their facial expressions or reactions are, therefore, an unreliable guide at best.
The Umpire's decision, to my mind, should be based solely on his convictions about what he has seen and heard of the cricketing action (excluding facial expression, reactions, etc) from his given position at 25 yards. Strict adherence to such a principle will serve most umpires well through their career. I teach this to budding umpires.

[srinivasan]

Once again excellent advices, at least most of them.. Mr. Singh and Jaybee have very good suggestions. One of my suggestions to new Umpires is to treat every ball to its merit and leave the past behind. To err is human...but once you start brooding over it, you may not be able to concentrate and fall in to various syndromes already discussed...Keep going GTOWNSEND, one day you are going to be a great Umpire of repute...

A word of acceptance about what Mr. Singh says with regards to reactions from players: to give a decision that way could be highly misleading and often end with a wrong decision. I suppose, one should consider the reality of what the eyes see, ears hear and the brain translates...and not the action of the players...

[kaney2021]

Being a cricket umpire is a tough job, but that does not excuse under-performance. Some cricket umpires are better than others are. The role of the umpire is to enforce the rules and laws of cricket and to ensure that players maintain the spirit of the game. Judging the best umpire goes beyond this; it must include the respect of peers and recognition by the International Cricket Council (ICC).
[url=http://www.cricandcric.com/sites/cricinfo.html
]cricketnext
[/url]

[hughjackman]

One bad umpire decision can change result of an match..... cricinfo

[gooders]

Jul 31, 2013 7:31:58 GMT hughjackman said:

One bad umpire decision can change result of an match..... cricinfo

You must, however, bear in mind something I was once told. The only people the result doesn't matter to are the two umpires. That is perhaps the best way to remain impartial.