IPL 2020 is likely to have an extra umpire per match to monitor no-balls. In the IPL Governing Council meeting at Mumbai, this proposal was raised. This is most likely the outcome of a number of serious concerns over no-ball decisions in the last few editions of the league.
Yes to no-ball umpire
When the umpire overlooked no-ball off the last ball in the match between Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore in an IPL match last season it irked Virat Kohli. Now the new IPL Governing Council is set to welcome a new umpire exclusively to have a check on the no-balls. “If all goes well, during the next Indian Premier League, you could see another umpire apart from the regular umpires just to “observe” no-balls. The concept sounds weird, but this was among the issues discussed in the first IPL Governing Council meeting which was held here,” a senior GC member told reporters after the meet.
He further added how the board wants to utilize new technologies. He explained, “We want to use the technology. We are having another umpire for only observing no-balls. There will be an umpire, who will be focused on no-balls only. And he will not be a third or fourth umpire.”
But before introducing it in the IPL, it will be tried out at domestic tournaments.
No to Power Player
The much-hyped ‘Power Player’ concept kept on hold for the time being. The board wanted to have a test run in the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy starting next week. But that would not be possible currently. On the concept of ‘Power Player’, the official said: “The matter was discussed but there is too little time to implement during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, which starts on Friday, November 8.”
Even a top Board official confirmed the same while taking to Sportstar. “We are exploring all the options and a decision will be taken over the course of time. The idea is to make the tournament fan-friendly, and we will take every suggestion into consideration. But Power Player may not be used in the next edition of the IPL due to lack of time. Before we implement that in the IPL, we need to test that in domestic tournaments and that will take some time.”
