Warne slams DRS verdict that saved Moeen

Champion spin bowler Shane Warne has slammed the Decision Review System and umpire Kumar Dharmaseena’s not out decision for Moeen Ali in the afternoon session of day three at Lord’s.

Ali was struck flush on the front pad by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon in the 78th over and was given not out by Dharmaseena.

Fielding captain Michael Clarke asked for a review from first slip, but the call remained with the on-field decision after the ball tracking technology predicted Lyon’s delivery was clipping leg-stump.

Warne was livid with the outcome, believing the ball was hitting enough of leg-stump to be deemed as out and he was critical of Dharmaseena’s verdict.

“Well for me, that’s a bad decision live,” Warne said, while commentating for Wide World of Sports.

“That should have been out. That was going on to hit the stumps and (it was) umpire’s call.”

Warne says the technology should be backed regardless of what the on-field decision is.

“I’ve said this a few times, we’ve got to take away what the umpire says when we’re talking about these referral decisions,” he said.

“If the umpire had have given that out, that’s out.

“You can’t see the see the same dismissal being given out or not out depending on what the umpire says.

“It’s a bad on-field decision and that causes inconsistency with the review process.

“If you take away that, and half the ball is hitting the stumps, it’s out irrelevant of what the on-field decision was.”

The still from Channel Nine's of the ball tracking system

Steve Smith reviewed his lbw dismissal in the first innings, but the decision was upheld when the ball tracking system ruled with the umpire as to where the ball struck the batsman, only fractionally in line with the batsman’s off-stump.

If the decision was given not out and England requested a review, the not out ruling would remain.

Former Australia captain and Wide World of Sports commentator Mark Taylor agrees with Warne, but says umpires need to consider the playing conditions when making decisions.

“I sense with Kumar Dharmaseena, the umpire, it was a defensive decision,” Taylor said.

“I think sometimes you’ve got to analyse the pitch as an umpire.

“To me, this is a very flat pitch. The only time we’ve seen wickets fall it’s been with the new ball.

“If you don’t give that out for a spinner, what are you ever going to give out?

“Because then it requires the fielding side to review it and then they get disappointed with that review.

“I’m not so much against the system of the review, I think it’s a poor on-field decision because on a pitch that’s not turning, not bouncing a lot, you should give that out every time.

“If the batsman feels aggrieved, then he should review it, and he would have been proven to be out.

“That’s where I think the problem stems from that decision.”