Bird, 87, felt the toughest task for the on-field umpires would be to constantly monitor the saliva ban on the ball - a regulation put in place by the ICC to stop the possible spread of the Coronavirus
Dickie Bird
Legendary umpire Dickie Bird is keen to see how Day One of international cricket plays out today amidst the stringent regulations in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bird, 87, felt the toughest task for the on-field umpires would be to constantly monitor the saliva ban on the ball—a regulation put in place by the ICC to stop the possible spread of the Coronavirus. "I'm more excited to see how the umpires conduct the game under the new set of regulations. It will be interesting to see how they constantly monitor the fielding side handling the ball and stop the possible use of saliva on it. Using saliva is a habit for players and it will be hard to break," Bird, who has officiated in 66 Tests and 69 ODIs, told mid-day from his Yorkshire home on Tuesday.
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Bird felt the umpires will need to be assisted by technology. "In modern cricket, cameras play a big role. Remember, the Sandpapergate incident was not caught by the umpires but by cameras. There has to be more cameras deployed for tomorrow's match and that should be the norm because it's impossible for umpires to watch the ball at all times. For example, a bowler can easily apply saliva on the ball during his run-up because the umpire cannot turn around to watch him at that time," explained Bird.
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