Don't sacrifice human element: Taufel

“There should be a right balance between the human element and technology to arrive at correct decisions. The balance is the key here. I will never say that there should not be any technology and that only umpires should be empowered to take all the decisions,” said Taufel who arrived here on Wednesday to conduct the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) seminar for umpires beginning at the National Cricket Academy from Thursday.  

Taufel, ICC’s Umpire of the Year since 2004, along with other three resource panel members from Cricket Australia -- Ross Turner, Dennis Burns and Ivan Lock -- will discuss threadbare the issues pertaining to umpiring in modern days.

The Australian, a regular for the meet ever since the BCCI took the initiative to enhance the standards of Indian umpires, said this year his focus would be on aspects that are critical to an umpire on a transition phase. “This is my third visit here. While the first couple of years were all about laying platform and working on the basics, this year we are concentrating on aspects that are critical when you make that transition to the International level. The focus will be on mental toughness, physical fitness and handling the media. We are also dealing with how to cope with different game situations as in calculation of overs and revising targets which are crucial when play is lost due to rain or bad light in a one day match or in a Twenty20 game. These issues get a lot of attention in the International level and we will deal with all that,” Taufel explained.

The 110 umpires will be split into batches of 30, 40 and 40 and the seminar will conclude on August 12.