'It Was A Wide And The Umpire Changed His Mind Looking At The Opposition Skipper:' David Warner Opens Up On The Paul Reiffel-MS Dhoni Wide-Ball Controversy

SunRisers Hyderabad’s skipper, David Warner has finally opened up on the entire controversy surrounding the decision that the umpire Paul Reiffel took being intimidated by MS Dhoni in match 29 of IPL 2020 between Chennai Super Kings and SunRisers Hyderabad. Warner was seen visibly frustrated with Reiffel’s call and the Australian has now spoken on the entire controversy.

In the 19th over of the game between CSK and SRH, Shardul Thakur bowled a wide yorker outside off stump and the on-field umpire Paul Reiffel first appeared to signal a wide but did not do so when he saw MS Dhoni, the CSK skipper going visibly upset over his decision. This caused a lot of controversy after the game as cricketers and fans, all were baffled as to what transpired on the pitch.

SRH skipper, David Warner, who was watching the game from the dugout, seemed extremely upset by Paul Reiffel and now the captain has weighed in on the controversial call.

David Warner Opens Up On The MS Dhoni-Paul Reiffel Wide-Ball Controversy

“That day with MS (Dhoni), I know he would have been frustrated had it been called a wide. But the simple fact is it was a wide and the umpire was going to call a wide. And he changed his mind by looking at the opposition captain’s body language,” Warner said.

“I am not saying this because it was MS Dhoni but because the captain was in the sight of the umpire right behind him. He is behind there as wicketkeeper, so he can see that, he has shown his frustration. We all do that, at times, as captains, we all show our frustrations but at the end of the day, they can make their calls, how they make it. We just gotta respect that. So there is no point of arguing,” Warner said on India Today e-Inspiration.

Technology Should Be Used Effectively In The Game: David Warner

“Having seen the other day, I know the players, myself guilty, when a bowler bowls a bouncer, and we think it should be wide, you do question where’s the consistency? As we have sat through these captain meetings, they still want to keep a human element component. I know the technology is there for all to use. What people don’t understand is if we are talking about captains being down in overs and time, if you are going to be late, you’re going to lose a couple of lakhs and slow the game down,” David Warner further stated.

“So in that case, they are saying waist-high no-balls are always checked if you’re out only. So you can’t review that. I find wide calls, look, that could be a third-umpire decision as well because they are giving the no-balls. There are so many variables in this. There is no right or wrong in this,” Warner added.

SRH needed 24 runs in the final 11 balls to capture the win. However, they couldn’t do it and now they will take on Kolkata Knight Riders in match 35 of IPL 2020 on Sunday.