West Indies Coach Sammy Questions Umpire Holdstock's Consistency After Contentious Calls in Barbados Test

Daren Sammy, the West Indies head coach, has publicly questioned the consistency of TV umpire Adrian Holdstock following a series of contentious decisions during the second day of the Barbados Test against Australia. Sammy's frustration reportedly led him to seek clarification from match referee Javagal Srinath regarding the decision-making process.

Roston Chase's controversial LBW dismissal sparked debate. © AFP

Sammy expressed his concerns, stating, "I have noticed, especially with this particular umpire, it's something that for me started in England. It's frustrating. I just ask for consistency in the decision-making."

The focal point of the controversy revolved around two key incidents. The first occurred shortly after lunch when Roston Chase was adjudged lbw to Pat Cummins. While the ball nipped in and kept low, the West Indies team believed that a spike on UltraEdge indicated an inside edge.

Sammy commented, "In our opinion, we saw the ball deviated onto the pad," referring to the dismissal that broke a promising 67-run partnership between Chase and Shai Hope.

A few overs later, Shai Hope edged a delivery from Beau Webster, and Alex Carey completed a one-handed catch. Replays suggested the ball may have grazed the ground, yet Holdstock ruled that Carey had his fingers underneath the ball.

"I'm just saying, judge what you see," Sammy asserted. "If you see the same thing and one is not out, there is even more doubt on the other than you give it out. Again, I don't know what he's seen but from the images that we've seen, the decisions are not fair enough for both teams. We're all humans. Mistakes will be made. I just want fairness."

When questioned about the possibility of a formal complaint, Sammy remained non-committal, stating, "You'll have to wait and see for that."

Sammy emphasized that his frustration stemmed not only from the events of Day 2 but also from previous instances involving the same umpire.

"Yeah, look, you don't want to get yourself in a situation where you're wondering about certain umpires. Is there something against this team? But when you see decision after decision, then it raises the question. I know he's here for the series. You don't want to go in a Test match having that doubt," Sammy explained.

He further added, "So I want to have that conversation as to the process... so we could be all clear. Because, at the end of the day, you don't want to be going into a Test match not trusting the umpires. And that's not what our team is about. So we're just looking for some clarity as to the decisions."

Sammy also emphasized his desire to shield his players from becoming embroiled in debates about umpiring.

"We know the rules. We know fines going all across the board," he stated. "I don't want them to focus on that. Yes, we're kind of shooting ourselves in the foot by dropping so many catches, but look at the Test match, against our own selves, some of these decisions and we're still in a position to win."

Even the Australian side acknowledged the controversial nature of some decisions. Mitchell Starc recounted an earlier incident where they believed they had Chase lbw, but Holdstock deemed the evidence insufficient to overturn the on-field decision.

Starc commented, "There's been some interesting ones. Obviously a couple more have gone against the West Indies than us. One for us [against Chase] looked like there was a gap between the bat and the ball, it cost us 40-odd runs, but then a contentious one to then get the wicket."

"As players, you can only ask a question. We don't use the technology to make that decision. It sort of felt like, or looked like, that the Snicko and the images were out of sync to some capacity," Starc concluded.