The debate over the concussion surrogate for India in the first T20I against Australia heats up every day with experts bringing their views. Former Indian cricketer Deep Dasgupta has endorsed match referee David Boon, who allowed the inclusion of Yuzvendra Chahal in place of Ravindra Jadeja.
The decision was made after the SUV took a hit to the helmet and suffered a late concussion during the first T20I against Australia in Canberra on Friday. Chahal’s inclusion clicked for India as the dummy ripped off 3 wickets to beat Australia by 11 runs and also took home the Man of the Match award.
However, the hosts were not happy with the decision. Australia’s head coach Justin Langer had a lively discussion with match referee Boon during the half-inning break.
Speaking in favor of India, Dasgupta said Kohli & Co did not violate any laws by having Chahal as a substitute for Jadeja’s concussion.
“I don’t think anyone takes head injuries lightly and shouldn’t take them lightly. And I don’t think anyone fakes something as serious as a head injury, either. In all sports, head injuries are taken very seriously and I don’t think any team, forget about Virat Kohli’s team and the Indian team leadership, will fake it, ”Dasgupta said in the Sports Today video on YouTube.
Dasgupta also explained why Jadeja continued to hit despite taking a hit to the helmet. He said: “When you’re in the heat of the moment, the adrenaline is so high that most of the time you don’t feel the pain. You only start to feel pain when everything calms down, when your heart rate drops. And that’s when you start to feel the pain. It is very possible that the concussion is delayed, that feeling is delayed and that could have happened with Jadeja too, ”said Dasgupta.
The former Indian cricketer also justified Virat Kohli’s post-match statement that Chahal was a ‘similar replacement’.
“If you just look at a similar replacement, obviously India has an SUV in Jadeja and a bowler in Chahal. But if what you’re looking for is equal for the remaining part of the game, that’s what Jadeja was going to do. He would have thrown 4 overs and that’s exactly what Chahal did as a spinner, thrown 4 overs.
“As for the game that was still left, I think it was an equal replacement. The match referee has full powers to decide what is comparable, in some cases the match referee has restricted the replacement from doing some things. Like-for-like builds on the remaining part of the game and I think David Boon, the match referee, was absolutely right, “said Dasgupta.
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