MS Dhoni has been known for his near-perfect accuracy while taking DRS. When he is not sure, it is most likely that taking the DRS is just throwing it away in a bin. This is exactly what happened during the 5th ODI against Sri Lanka when Yuzvendra Chahal was bowling in the 33rd over. Chahal believed that he had got his man Lahiru Thirimanne trapped in front of the stumps using the round the wicket angle but it was not the case. Though Dhoni too appealed as Thirimanne’s sweep shot did not connect with the ball at all but when the Umpire turned the appeal down he was not sure whether to take the DRS or not.
The Umpire asked skipper Virat Kohli on whether he was challenging the Umpire’s decision or not telling him that he has only 10 seconds to decide. Kohli looked at Dhoni and he was not sure as he signaled to Chahal who was sure that he has been denied a wicket by the Umpire.
Seeing the way Angelo Mathews and Thirimanne’s partnership for the fourth wicket was building, Kohli went ahead with the review and took a chance. But, the replay showed that the impact of the ball on the pads was outside the line of the stumps and the only review got wasted.
— Virat Kohli (@Cricvids1) September 3, 2017
The stumps too were hitting but Umpire’s call would have been considered had the impact of the ball been in the line of stumps. Dhoni was disappointed as the DRS did not go India’s way. In the previous match, Dhoni converted wide balls into wickets as Niroshan Dickwella and Dilshan Munaweera had to walk off the field after the decision was reversed.
On the other hand, Kohli has had a bad record while using DRS as he tends to waste them by taking premature calls. Though India did not need DRS for the rest of the innings as Sri Lanka were bundled out for 238 runs.
