'A dangerous precedent'

After several umpiring errors in the Sydney Test, an official protest from the Indian board saw the unprecedented step of an umpire, Steve Bucknor, being sacked from the next Test. A selection of the reactions that provoked.

10-Jan-2008

Got to go: Steve Bucknor has been sacked from officiating in next week’s Perth Test © Getty Images
“… the ICC’s reaction in this particular instance seems to be extreme … A dangerous precedent may have been set by the ICC.”
“What is there, eight international umpires on the panel? And if a couple of teams aren’t happy with umpires then all of a sudden you have got one to choose from?”
“I feel for Steve … it’s probably the best for him to stand down and relieve the pressure a little bit.”
“… it sends the wrong signal to those countries that are awash with cash, power and influence that they can get what they want as a result of their status.”
“When I see things like this, I think, ‘Thank God I’ve retired’.”
“By standing Steve down for the third Test, we have successfully defused the situation, at least for the time being, and so what was a sporting issue has not become a political crisis.”
“You wonder what confidence this gives umpires. What happens now if Billy Bowden makes a few mistakes?”
“Through their actions or inactions, they [the ICC] are threatening the future of the game.”
“I really feel sorry for him. After all he is a human being and anyone can make mistakes. I wonder if the same [Indian] people who showered praise on him two years ago [when Bucknor was felicitated at the India-Pakistan Test in Kolkata, his 100th] are after his blood now.”