Simon Taufel confirms umpires made mistake in awarding six overthrows

He said that England should have been awarded five runs instead of six runs.

(Web Desk) – Decorated former umpire Simon Taufel, who had no official role with the governing body at the tournament, on Monday opined that umpires Dharmasena and Erasmus had erred by making a “clear mistake” with a “judgment error”.

“There was a judgment error on the overthrow. The judgment error was the timing of when the fielder threw the ball,” Taufel said. “The act of the overthrow starts when the fielder releases the ball. That s the act (mentioned in the rule). It becomes an overthrow from the instant of the throw."

The umpires convened for a long period of time before play resumed after six runs had been added to England’s total.

He said that England should have been awarded five runs instead of six runs because the overthrow rule states that runs shall not be awarded if the batsmen do not cross the middle of the pitch “at the instant of the throw”.

“It’s a clear mistake … it’s an error of judgment,” Taufel told foxsports.com.au.

“In the heat of what was going on, they (umpires Marais Erasmus and Kumar Dharmasena) thought there was a good chance the batsmen had crossed at the instant of the throw” Taufel added. “Obviously TV replays showed otherwise.”

Taufel defended officiating umpires Kumar Dharmasena and Marais Erasmus, who were in the middle for the chaotic finish, but confirmed they had made a mistake.

England claimed their first World Cup title in thrilling circumstances at Lord s, ending 44 years of misery in the prestigious one-day tournament and sending a nation into raptures. Their match against the Black Caps was tied after both sides had batted 50 overs, and then again after a super over. The hosts ultimately prevailed on a count of boundaries scored, which is the tiebreaker used to split teams in the event of a tied super over.