Time to give TV umps more clout

OK, so here's the deal:

The umpiring world-wide is sub-standard and in fact in some instances it is appalling. I am in no way suggesting someone is cheating, as one or two have done in the past, I am simply confirming something we all know. A percentage of the men in white, who have an enormous influence on team results and individual career, are incompetent.

Again this last weekend we had two Test matches that suffered due to poor decisions, and in the end that's what grabbed a fair chunk of the headlines. In Port Elizabeth, where South Africa and New Zealand were engaged in an intriguing contest (until Nelson appeared on the scoreboard), nearly 25% of the decisions were poor – all but one of them by the same umpire. It is fair to say that Ian Robinson of Zimbabwe had a test he would rather forget.

In Pakistan, England captain Nasser Hussain was on the receiving end of shockers in both innings.

We have been discussing this issue for years and I'm afraid it is now time for the powers that be to do something positive about lbw decisions. Technology must be introduced to improve this erratic aspect of the game but it is a delicate matter. We must get the balance right. The last thing we want is two guys in the middle who just count to six.

I think the solution is simple. Umpires in internationals, Tests and one-dayers, carry a walkie-talkie to communicate with the TV umpire. I strongly believe the TV umpire should adopt a role akin to that of a tennis umpire, who can over-rule if need be.

The umpires in the middle have to make the call, but the TV umpire can step in to ask for another look before the batsman leaves the pitch area.

It shouldn't delay proceedings too much. On the average, we could expect maybe two or three referrals per day and that is better than having an international cricket match overshadowed by incompetence.

The careers of a few umpires would be enhanced – and so would some players' careers.