SHARJAH - The Lahore Qalandars' management Friday questioned the standard of the umpires after the team lost a nail-biting game to Islamabad United, their fourth defeat, in the Pakistan Super League's (PSL) third season.

Qalandars COO and manager Sameen Rana told media that Fakhar Zaman wanted to review the LBW (leg before wicket) call against him but was told by the umpires that the review had already been used by Umar Akmal.

“Some decisions didn’t go good for us. When Fakhar Zaman was adjudged LBW, he wanted to take a review but umpires told him that [he didn't] have any review left,” Rana told the media.

“When we clarified to them [about the rules of the review being retained], they agreed that a review was available but, by that time, Fakhar was out of the ground,” he explained. It is noteworthy that as per the rules, if the impact is an umpire's call then the review is retained. Rana said he was not making an excuse but that that particular moment had hurt the team’s momentum. “This isn’t an excuse but it was unfair; […] if we lose a batsman like Fakhar, then it hurts the team,” he said.

“I think the PCB (Pakistan Cricket Board) should also see [that] if these things are happening, the rules on DRS (Decision Review System) should be clarified. Fakhar was clearly not out. Umpires can make mistakes but if you are told at that moment that you have no reviews left, then that’s very, very unfair,” he added. The Qalandars' top official said he was not planning to protest against the matter but stressed that the PCB should improve the standards of umpiring in the tournament. “Can’t protest much, it’s a human error and we can only emphasise on the PCB" to improve the umpiring standards, he said.

Rana added that he was proud of the Kashmiri player Salman Irshad who, on Friday, made a dream debut by taking a wicket on his first ball and by hitting a six on the first ball he faced.

He also backed the decision of sending Akmal as an opener. “Umar was struggling in a later number, so we sent him up in the batting order [to help him] gain confidence by playing in circles,” Rana said. “We are proud of Salman Irshad. He did what we were expecting from him. He’s the first cricketer from Kashmir on this forum; he’s a future star,” he added.

In response to a question, Rana credited Brendon McCullum for playing an anchoring inning against his style. “Brendon today played selfless cricket against his natural style and tried to stay until the end for the team,” Rana said.