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NEWS Darrell Hair is no stranger to controversies 21st Aug 2006  23.17 IST By Manish Kumar   Throughout his long career, Australian umpire Darrell Hair has been involved in a number of controversies, which surfaced from as early as his first Test match. Hair’s first match was between Australia and India at Adelaide in January 1992, won by Australia by 38 runs with second innings centuries to David Boon and Mark Taylor after a first innings of only 145, and two 5-wicket bags by Craig McDermott. Cricket’s Bible Wisden noted that the game was “marred … by controversy over lbw decisions – eight times Indians were given out, while all but two of their own appeals were rejected”. Hair’s partner was Peter McConnell, standing in his last Test match. The Test match between Australia and the West Indies at Adelaide in January 1993, was a fluctuating match won by the visitors by a mere one run. The victory was achieved when Australia’s No. 11, Craig McDermott, was dismissed after a 40-run partnership with Tim May had brought Australia so close to victory. Hair ruled that a short-pitched ball from Courtney Andrew Walsh had brushed McDermott’s glove and upheld the appeal for a catch, but many observers believed that McDermott had not gloved the ball. In 1994 the International Cricket Council (ICC) introduced a policy of appointing one umpire to each Test match from a non-participating country, In the Test match between Australia and South Africa at Adelaide in January 1994, Wisden stated that Peter Kirsten “had an animated conversation with Hair after three of his team-mates were given out lbw. Another outburst when he was given out leg-before himself in the second innings” resulted in Kirsten being fined a total of 65 per cent of his match fee. The biggest controversy ‘raised’ by Hair was in his only Test between Australia and Sri Lanka – the Boxing Day Test at the MCG in 1995 when he called Mutiah Muralitharan seven times in three overs for throwing. Wisden stated “unusually, he made his judgment from the bowler’s end, and several minutes passed before the crowd realised that Muralitharan’s elbow, rather than his foot, was at fault”. Murali was brought on at the other end, and was not called by either Hair or his colleague, New Zealander R. S. Dunne, although Hair told the Sri Lankans at tea on the second day that he was ready to call him from the striker’s end. Hair did not umpire another Test match involving Sri Lanka until their tour of the West Indies in 2003. Hair’s last Test match involving Australia was the Boxing Day Test in 2001 against South Africa at Melbourne, won by Australia by 9 wickets. In 2002, ICC introduced a policy of appointing both umpires in a Test match of non-participating nations. So, the majority of Hair’s Test matches have been played outside Australia, and now do not involve Australia. In November 2005, Hair surprised Pakistan by referring a run out decision concerning captain Inzamam-ul-Haq to the third umpire during the Faisalabad Test against England. Inzamam appeared to be taking evasive action against a throw from Stephen Harmison , and a batsman cannot be run out if he leaves his ground due to evasive action. The third umpire ruled Inzamam out. And Hair added the latest feather in his controversial cap on the fourth day of the Oval Test between England and Pakistan on Sunday when he and fellow umpire Billy Doctrove ruled that the Pakistani team had been involved in ball tampering. They awarded five penalty runs to England and offered them a replacement ball. Play continued until the tea break, but the Pakistani players refused to take the field thereafter. The umpires then left the field, gave a warning to the Pakistani players, and returned once more 15 minutes later. After waiting two more minutes the umpires removed the bails and declared England winners by forfeiture. The Pakistani team did take to the field 25 minutes later, but by then it was Hair and Doctrove themselves who refused to continue the game stating that the game had already ended with a Pakistani forfeiture the moment the bails were removed. The Test was abandoned following meetings between various officials from all parties, with Pakistan forfeiting the game. Both teams had been willing to continue the match as confirmed by their respective boards however after extensive talks it was agreed that the umpires had correctly awarded the match to England. Pakistan have now announced they would no longer accept Darrell Hair as an umpire for any cricket match. Also View Team Page: Pakistan Team Page: England

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