Daryl Mitchell's dismissal during second India-New Zealand T20I sparks DRS controversy

The second T20I between India and New Zealand at Auckland’s Eden Park was marred with controversy after Kiwi batsman Daryl Mitchell was adjudged LBW off Krunal Pandya in a controversial manner.

New Zealand got off to a rough start after opting to bat, losing Wellington hero Tim Seifert early with fellow opener Colin Munro departing soon. Mitchell had barely got off the mark batting at No 4 when he got a straight one from Krunal in the sixth over, with the ball hitting him on the knee roll in front of the stumps, eliciting a successful appeal for an LBW from the left-arm spinner.

Mitchell however, went for the review straightaway, and HotSpot even confirmed a bright mark on the batsman’s inside edge. Third umpire Shaun Haig however, wasn’t too sure whether the mark was caused by the ball hitting the inside edge or from it brushing against his pad. Haig then proceeded to RTS, where he didn’t find anything conclusive to confirm an inside edge either. The decision was eventually sealed in the bowler’s favour after getting three reds on HawkEye.

Reckon Daryl Mitchell very unlucky there. Protocol for conflict between hot spot and snicko is the key to resolving this. Naked eye showed deviation #NZvIND #CricbuzzLIVE

— Gautam Bhimani (@gbhimani) February 8, 2019

Both Mitchell and Williamson however, appeared dismayed by the decision and walked up to the umpires to have a word. India skipper Rohit Sharma and senior wicket-keeper-batsman MS Dhoni also got involved in the matter from the Indian camp, but the third umpire’s decision was final and Mitchell had to walk back to the Black Caps dugout. The Eden Park crowd booed the decision as the batsman made his way back.

New Zealand however, were later bolstered by Colin de Grandhomme’s 28-ball 50 as well as Ross Taylor’s 42. The Indian bowling unit though, dished out a much better performance than Wellington, with Krunal (3/28) and Khaleel Ahmed (2/27) helping restrict the Kiwis to 158/8.