Officials were once again at the centre of controversy in this Ashes series when they took the players off the field for bad light on the fourth day of the third Test at Old Trafford.
Subsequent rain prevented the match resuming and play was officially abandoned at 5.38 pm, with officials — much criticised for their implementation of the Decision Review System this series — coming under scrutiny again. Australia captain Michael Clarke, 30 not out, was clearly furious at being told to go off for bad light in a situation where any stoppage increased England’s chances of securing the draw that would see them retain the Ashes.
Although the floodlights were on, the umpires decided conditions were too dangerous to continue when it looked as if fast-medium bowler Stuart Broad was about to be brought back into the attack. It used to be the case the umpires would ‘offer’ the light to the batsmen to see if they wanted to continue or not.
But a change to the regulations in October 2010 left the issue solely in the hands of the umpires after concerns had been raised the old system was unfair to the fielding side.