ICC maintains status quo on referral system

The International Cricket Council (ICC) logo at the ICC headquarters in Dubai, October 31, 2010.

REUTERS - The use of the Decision Review System (DRS) in international cricket will remain at the discretion of teams involved in bilateral series' after the sport's governing body on Wednesday opted against making it mandatory.

The International Cricket Council's (ICC) cricket committee and chief executives had recommended the full adoption of the DRS, which allows teams to appeal against an umpire's decision, after expressing satisfaction with technology enhancements in the system.

But the ICC's executive board, chaired by Sharad Pawar, decided to maintain the status quo after a two-day meeting in Kuala Lumpur.

"...the ICC Board agreed to continue with the present arrangement where the two competing nations in a bilateral series decide on the use of DRS," the ICC said in a statement.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which has always been sceptical of the technology used in the DRS, had said earlier this week they continue to believe "the system is not foolproof".

"The (BCCI) board also sticks to its view that the decision on whether or not to use the DRS for a particular series should be left to the boards involved in that series," BCCI secretary Sanjay Jagdale said in a statement on Monday.

The ICC's executive board did, however, agree to an increase in the number of permitted short-pitched deliveries from one to two per over in 50-over internationals.

One-day cricket's 'powerplays' will be restricted to the first 10 overs plus one five-over batting powerplay to be completed by the 40th over and only four fielders will be allowed outside the 30-yard circle.

(Reporting by Sudipto Ganguly in Mumbai; editing by Tom Bartlett)