The second day of Ranji Trophy final between Saurashtra and Bengal got off to an unconventional start on Tuesday as there was just one official umpire on the field.
During the opening day of the match in Rajkot on Monday, umpire Chettithody Shamsuddin got injured after being hit by a ball around the lower abdomen area which was lobbed towards him at the fall of a wicket. This forced him to stay off the field in the first session on day two.
What this also meant was that KN Ananthapadmanabhan was umpiring from both ends to start proceedings on the second day. Piyush Kakkar was deployed as only the square-leg umpire, with not much officiating to do.
The third umpire for the match is Sundaram Ravi but he could not take the field in the first session as he has the responsibility of looking at DRS calls, among other things.
Ranji Trophy matches usually have two umpires only, with the match referee playing the third umpire’s role as well (there are six cameras used in every Ranji match). In games that are shown on television, a third umpire is added to the officiating team.
In such a case where an on-field umpire is injured or unwell, an official, who plays the role of a liaison officer for the umpires and referee through the course of the match, is asked to take the field as a square-leg umpire. This person is usually a local umpire and is employed for the match by the state association.
In the second session on Tuesday, though, Shamsuddin, who was to fly home to recover, took up the role of the third umpire and Ravi came on as the second on-field umpire.
It was later reported by PTI that Shamshuddin will not be officiating in the remainder of the three days in the match. He will be replaced by Yashwant Barde who will be the second on-field umpire.
Shamshuddin did not take the field on day two after the pain aggravated overnight and he went for a check-up in a local hospital on Tuesday morning.
“Shamshuddin felt more pain in the night and went to the hospital in the morning for a check-up. He has been advised a week’s rest,” said a Saurashtra Cricket Association spokesperson.
This turn of events further mars the title clash of India’s premier first-class tournament. At the end of the first day’s play, Bengal coach Arun Lal had slammed the quality of the pitch at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium.
Opting to bat first after skipper Jaydev Unadkat won the toss, Saurashtra had reached 206/5 at stumps on Monday. Cheteshwar Pujara had to retire because of a throat infection and fever but the seasoned right-hander was back at the crease at the start of day’s play on Tuesday.