UDRS too costly for cash-strapped Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka will not use the Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS) for Australia’s forthcoming cricket tour because of the cost of the system, the country’s governing body said on Friday.

“We won’t be using UDRS when Australian tours Sri Lanka this month,” Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) chairman Upali Dharmadasa said, adding that the board had been unable to attract enough advertising money.

“We just can’t find a sponsor to be able to use the expensive technology,” he said.

The Australian team arrives in Colombo on July 30 to play three Tests, five one-dayers and two Twenty20 games during their tour that ends on September 20.

The decision came as Sri Lanka slashed its 300 million rupee ($2.8 million) budget for the Australian tour to 100 million rupees after the projected income was a “dismal” 150 million rupees.

Local media reported that Sri Lanka would have to spend around $150,000 for UDRS technology where decisions can be reviewed using video, audio, ball-tracking and thermal-imaging technology.

The International Cricket Council last month made UDRS mandatory for Test and one-day games “subject to availability and commercial considerations”.

This means the Australian tour of Sri Lanka can still go ahead without UDRS.

Sri Lanka co-hosted the 2011 World Cup at a cost of $69 million, far in excess of its projected budget amid allegations of financial mismanagement. The SLC has sought a government bailout to settle World Cup debts.