T20 WC 2021 to become the first ICC men’s T20I tournament to introduce DRS

The 2021 T20 World Cup will become the first Men’s T20I World Cup tournament to witness the use of the Decision Review System (DRS). The same was confirmed by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Each side will be allotted 2 reviews per innings. The ICC stated that one extra review has been added due to the fact that there might be less experienced umpires officiating in the tournament because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Another change that has been brought about is the number of minimum overs that are to be bowled in case a match is affected by rain. Each team should have batted a minimum of 5 overs at least, for the Duckworth Lewis method to come into play in the league stages. And, this will increase to a minimum of 10 overs for the semifinal and final matches.

The Decision Review System was used in a T20 WC event for the first time in 2018

The Decision Review System (DRS) was used for the first time in T20 World Cups during the 2018 Women’s T20 World Cup. During the tournament, each team was allowed to avail one review per innings.

As far as Men’s cricket is concerned, the DRS was first used in a major ICC event during the 2017 Champions Trophy. The 2019 fifty-over World Cup that was held in England as well as the inaugural edition of the World Test Championship (WTC) also saw the use of the Decision Review System.

The 2021 T20 World Cup will be the 7th mega event that will take place in the T20 format of the game on the Men’s side. The first-ever T20 World Cup was held in the year 2007, and it was the MS Dhoni-led Indian side that won the inaugural edition in South Africa.

West Indies is the only cricket team that has won the Men’s T20 World Cup on 2 occasions, and are also the defending champions as well. Apart from India (2007) and West Indies (2012 and 2016), Pakistan (2009), England (2010) and Sri Lanka (2014) have also won the T20 World Cup as well.