India vs England: Virat Kohli questions the importance of soft signal for outfield catches

Ahmedabad: Indian captain Virat Kohli on Thursday questioned the concept of requiring “conclusive proofs” to overturn a “soft signal” of the field umpires, saying that rules should be made simpler so that teams do not suffer in high-stake games. During the fourth T20I against England here, which India won by eight runs, there were at least two dismissals that benefitted England for want of conclusive proofs. Asked about the incidents at the post-match presentation, Kohli went back to a Test match against England, which preceded the T20I series. “There was an instance during the Test series when I was next to Jinks (Ajinkya Rahane) and he clearly caught the ball but he wasn’t sure so we went upstairs. If it is a half and half effort and the fielder is in doubt, there is no way the umpire from square leg can see it clearly. “The soft signal becomes that important and it becomes tricky. Where there should be conclusive proof? I don’t know why there can’t be an ‘I don’t know’ call with the umpires as well. It is similar to umpire’s call as well. [caption id=“attachment_9437271” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  David Malan takes a catch of Suryakumar Yadav during the 4th T20I at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad. Sportzpics[/caption] “These are decisions that can change the course of the game, especially in these big games. We were on the receiving side today, and tomorrow it could be some other team.” Suryakumar Yadav was unlucky to have been given out in the 14th over after repeated replays of Dawid Malan’s catch off Sam Curran by the TV umpire. A part of the ball seemed to have touched the ground but the TV umpire did not overturn the on-field umpire’s decision (soft signal) due to a lack of conclusive proof. Washington Sundar was also given out in the last over after repeated replays by the TV umpire to see if Adil Rashid had touched the ropes with his back heel while taking the catch failed to get a conclusive evidence. The Indian captain said the rules should be made simple by “ironing out” the grey areas. “… keep the game really simple and linear. It isn’t ideal in high pressure games and have a lot of clarity on the field.” On him leaving the field during the nervy late overs, when Rohit Sharma was leading the side, Kohli said, “I ran for a ball and threw it and I just aggravated my leg a little bit. Nothing serious, I should be fine for the game in a day and a half. “Better than sprinting for five or six overs, because we have another game in two days and I took the smart decision of going out. I didn’t want to make it into a niggle or an injury.”