Umpires have the most thankless task in cricket - the only others who come close are selectors.

Both do their job without any margin of error - if umpires get most of their decisions right, it is part of their job responsibility. But if they err on even one decision in a series, they are criticised by players, management and media.

This is not to say that umpires don't make wrong decisions. Some of them make mistakes that would make junior umpires cringe.

In the main, umpiring errors are with LBW decisions. In fairness, it is very difficult for umpires to make a split-second call on the following; whether the ball has pitched in line with the stumps, judge the height of the ball when it hits the pad, guess the swing/spin on the ball and take into account the distance the batsman is standing outside the crease.

'Even with technology it is very difficult to make out whether a batsman is 100 per cent out'


All these parameters have to be considered when making a decision not forgetting whether the ball has hit the bat.

Technology has improved quite a bit in recent years - but even now, it is very difficult to make out whether a batsman is 100 per cent out. There is always an element of doubt.

Based on the number of wrong decisions umpires give is not the only issue in assessing an umpire's performance. We should also consider how strict they are on the ground in enforcing the laws and how much respect they have from players.

Steve Bucknor and Billy Doctrove consistently make errors, Asad Rauf, Rudy Koertzen and Billy Bowden are generally good despite occasional off-days.

Daryl Harper and Aleem Dar are probably two of the best umpires around. They have consistently raised the level of umpiring  while not compromising on their responsibilities and duties on the ground.