How DRS Works in T20: Reviews, Umpire's Call and Ball Tracking Explained

DRS — the Decision Review System — is the part of T20 cricket that makes fans shout at the television even when the ball has already been bowled.

A batter is given out LBW, and he makes a T-shape with his arms. A fielding captain is sure there was an edge behind, and he makes the same signal. The on-field umpire makes the shape of a TV screen, the third umpire looks at replays, ball tracking and sound, and the decision either stands or is overturned.

In T20, where one wicket or one wrong LBW decision can change a match in 20 overs, DRS matters more than in any other format, because there is no time to recover from a bad decision. A batter given out wrongly in the 18th over does not get another innings. A bowler denied a wicket in the powerplay does not get another powerplay.

Here is how DRS works in T20, in plain language, with the rules, the technology, and the strategy that follows from them.

What is DRS, and what can you review?

DRS is the technology-assisted process that allows teams to challenge an on-field umpire's decision on whether a batter is out.

It was first tested in international cricket during the India–Sri Lanka Test series in 2008, officially introduced in Tests in November 2009, later in ODIs in 2011, and in T20Is in 2017. It used to be called the Umpire Decision Review System, or UDRS, before the name was shortened to DRS.

In T20 internationals, a player review can only be used on whether a batter is out — LBW, caught behind, caught in the field, stumped, run out, or hit wicket, for example. You cannot use a T20I review to challenge a wide, a no-ball on its own, a boundary decision, or a fielding decision that is not about a dismissal.

In the IPL, since 2023, teams have also been allowed to review wide and no-ball calls, as part of the IPL's own DRS rules. That is an IPL-specific addition, not an ICC T20I rule, and it is why you sometimes see an IPL captain review a wide that would not be reviewable in a T20I.

The third umpire uses the approved technology available for that match, typically including ball tracking and sound-based edge detection such as UltraEdge or Real-Time Snicko. Hot Spot may be available in some broadcasts, but it is not a universal requirement.

How many reviews do you get in T20?

In T20 internationals, each team gets two unsuccessful reviews per innings, the same as in ODIs, under the ICC's current playing conditions as of October 2026. Test sides get three unsuccessful reviews per innings.

The old limit of one review per innings in T20 cricket no longer applies. It was raised from July 2020 as a COVID-19 measure — to three in Tests and two in ODIs — and both increases have since become permanent.

The word “unsuccessful” matters. The limit counts only unsuccessful reviews:

• If the decision is overturned, the review is successful, and the team keeps it. It does not count towards the limit, and the team can use it again later in the same innings.
• If the decision stands because of umpire's call on an LBW, the review is not counted as unsuccessful. The team keeps it.
• If a not-out decision stands because the delivery was a no-ball, the review does not count against the team.
• If the decision stands and it is not umpire's call or a no-ball, the review is lost, and the team has one fewer review for the rest of that innings.

In a T20 innings, that means a team starts with two reviews, and can keep them if it uses them well, or lose them quickly if it uses them badly. A team that burns both reviews in the first 10 overs has no reviews left for the death overs, when a wrong LBW or a missed edge can decide the match.

In the IPL, the limit is also two reviews per innings under the IPL rules from 2023, with the same principle that a successful review is retained.

Who can review, and how fast must they ask?

Only two people can ask for a review in a match:

• The batter, if he has been given out. He can review his own dismissal.
• The fielding captain, if the batter has been given not out. He can review a not-out decision, usually an LBW or a caught-behind appeal that the on-field umpire turned down.

No other player can ask for a review, and a batter who is not out cannot review a decision about another batter.

The review must be requested within 15 seconds of the ball becoming dead, by making a T-shape with both arms. That is the DRS timer, and it remains 15 seconds under the current rules, including in the T20 World Cup 2026 protocol. Late requests are to be declined.

That 15-second rule is why you see batters and captains looking at the dressing room, or at the non-striker, before deciding. In 15 seconds, a batter has to decide if he hit the ball, if the ball pitched in line, and if it was hitting the stumps — and a captain has to decide if the ball was close enough to the bat to be worth a review. There is no time for a long discussion, and there is no time to wait for a replay on the big screen.

Two recent examples show how strict the timer is: Will Young in Kanpur, whose late review was not allowed, and Dewald Brevis in IPL 2025, whose review was declined because the timer had expired. Both cases are reminders that DRS is not just about technology. It is about asking in time.

Once the review is signalled, the on-field umpire makes the shape of a TV screen and passes the decision to the third umpire. The third umpire then follows a fixed order of checks, not a random look at replays.

What does the third umpire check, in order?

For an LBW review, the third umpire checks in this order:

1. No-ball first.
The third umpire first checks for any kind of no-ball — overstepping, height, or a fielder infringement. If it was a no-ball, the batter cannot be out LBW, and the review ends there. The fielding team does not lose its review in that case, because the decision stands for a reason that has nothing to do with the LBW itself.

2. Did the batter hit the ball?
Next, the third umpire checks whether the batter hit the ball, using UltraEdge or Real-Time Snicko, which combines sound and video evidence to detect contact between bat and ball, and Hot Spot where it is available. If there was a clear edge, the batter cannot be out LBW, because the ball hit the bat before the pad. If there was no edge, the third umpire moves to ball tracking.

3. Ball tracking: pitching, impact, hitting.
Finally, the third umpire uses ball tracking — Hawk-Eye — to answer three questions about an LBW:

• Where did the ball pitch?
• Where did it hit the batter?
• Would it have hit the stumps?

If the replays are inconclusive, the on-field decision stands. If they show the decision was wrong, the on-field umpire reverses it.

For a caught-behind review, the order is similar but shorter: check for a no-ball, then check UltraEdge for a spike in the sound as the ball passes the bat, then check if the catch was taken cleanly. For a run-out or stumping, the third umpire checks the replays frame by frame to see if the bat or foot was grounded behind the crease when the bails were broken.

Hawk-Eye ball tracking: how it predicts where the ball would have gone

Hawk-Eye is the ball-tracking system used in DRS for LBW decisions. It uses multiple high-speed cameras around the ground to track the ball's path in three dimensions, from the bowler's hand to the point where it hits the pad, and then predicts where it would have gone after hitting the pad, if the pad had not been in the way.

That prediction is the part fans see on television as a graphic: a line showing the ball pitching, hitting the pad, and then continuing to the stumps, or missing the stumps, or clipping them.

Hawk-Eye is not a camera that sees the future. It is a calculation, based on the ball's speed, angle, swing, seam and spin up to the point of impact, projected forward to the stumps. The further the ball has to travel after hitting the pad, the less certain that prediction becomes, which is why umpire's call exists.

For an LBW to be given out on ball tracking, the ball must have pitched in line with the stumps or outside off stump (not outside leg stump), must have hit the batter in line with the stumps (or, if the batter was not playing a shot, outside off stump can also be out), and must be projected to hit the stumps. If any of those three conditions is not met, the batter is not out LBW.

In T20, that matters because batters play across the line more often, move around the crease, and are hit on the pad while trying to scoop or reverse-sweep. A ball that pitches outside leg stump cannot be LBW, even if it would have hit the stumps, and a ball that hits the batter outside the line of the stumps when he is playing a shot cannot be LBW, even if it was going on to hit.

Umpire's call: why a close LBW can stay not out, or stay out

Umpire's call is the most debated part of DRS, and the most misunderstood.

Umpire's call applies specifically to LBW reviews. Ball tracking can predict where a delivery would have ended up, but the further the ball travels after hitting the pad, the less certain that prediction becomes. So if the projection shows the ball just clipping the edge of the stumps, rather than hitting them squarely, the system treats it as too close to overrule the umpire, and the original on-field decision stands.

Crucially, a team does not lose a review when the result comes back as umpire's call. The review is simply void, not unsuccessful.

That means two similar-looking deliveries can lead to different outcomes, if the original decisions were different and the ball-tracking results fall within the umpire's call margins:

• If the on-field umpire gave the batter out, and ball tracking shows umpire's call on hitting the stumps, the batter stays out.
• If the on-field umpire gave the batter not out, and ball tracking shows umpire's call on hitting the stumps, the batter stays not out.

In both cases, the technology is saying “too close to be certain, so we will trust the umpire who saw it live.” That is not the technology being ignored. It is the technology admitting its own margin of error.

Umpire's call can apply to certain close results involving the ball's impact point or whether it would hit the stumps. The exact criteria differ by zone, so it is not accurate to say that one universal “50% of the ball” rule decides every umpire's call. The principle is the same, though: if it is marginal, the on-field call stands.

This middle section is where fans usually check DRS together, with the review count, the timer, and the ball-tracking steps in one place, alongside official broadcasts. A platform like Cricbet99 is sometimes used for that kind of following. That platform is a gaming and betting-related service, so any related features are for adults only, where legally permitted, and following DRS does not require using any betting feature.

UltraEdge and Hot Spot: how an edge is detected

For caught-behind and caught-in-the-field reviews, ball tracking is not the main tool. Edge detection is.

UltraEdge / Real-Time Snicko uses a combination of sound and video evidence to detect contact between bat and ball. A stump microphone picks up the sound as the ball passes the bat, and the system shows it as a spike on an audio graph, synchronised with the video. If there is a clear spike at the exact moment the ball passes the bat, there was an edge. If there is no spike, or the spike is at a different moment — for example, when the bat hits the pad or the ground — there was no edge.

Hot Spot uses infrared cameras to detect the heat generated by friction when the ball hits the bat or pad. It shows a bright spot on the bat where the ball made contact. Hot Spot is useful when UltraEdge is inconclusive, for example when there is background noise, but it is not available in every match, and it is not a universal requirement for DRS.

The third umpire will look at both, where available, before deciding if there was an edge. If the replays are inconclusive — for example, if UltraEdge shows a spike but the video does not clearly show the ball touching the bat, or vice versa — the on-field decision stands.

2026 changes: what actually changed, and what did not

The DRS timer did not change in 2026. It remains 15 seconds.

What changed in 2026, under the ICC's updated playing conditions, was how secondary dismissals are handled on a review:

Revised caught-to-LBW secondary check: If a batter is cleared of one dismissal mode on review — say, caught behind — the TV umpire may check the next mode in sequence, such as LBW, carrying the original “out” decision forward. Under the 2025 protocol, umpire's call can now keep a batter out via that secondary-dismissal review. In plain language: if you review a caught-behind decision and there was no edge, the third umpire can then check if you were out LBW instead, and if the LBW is umpire's call, the original out decision can stand.

Combined reviews in chronological order: When there are combined reviews — for example, a batter reviews a caught decision and the fielding team reviews an LBW on the same ball — the third umpire checks them in chronological order, not in the order the teams asked for them.

Fairness-of-catch check on no-balls: The third umpire can check the fairness of a catch on a no-ball, even though the batter cannot be out on a no-ball, because a fair catch on a no-ball can affect other decisions, such as a run-out.

Stop clock, not DRS timer: The stop clock — 60 seconds between overs, now in Tests as well — is a separate timing rule from the DRS timer. It is about over rates, not about reviews, and it should not be confused with the 15-second DRS timer.

The October 2026 boundary “bunny-hop” ban — which stops a fielder from jumping from outside the boundary, catching the ball in the air, and landing back inside — is a fielding law change, not a DRS change, but it is often mentioned alongside DRS changes because it also affects what the third umpire can check on a boundary catch.

Strategy: when should a team review in T20?

In T20, with only two unsuccessful reviews per innings, review strategy is about saving reviews for the moments that matter, not using them on every close appeal.

Batters should review only if they are sure they hit the ball, or sure the ball was missing.
A batter who reviews an LBW because he “felt” he hit it, without a clear edge, will lose a review if ball tracking shows the ball hitting the stumps. A batter who reviews because the ball pitched outside leg stump, or was clearly going over the stumps, is more likely to get the decision overturned and keep his review.

Captains should review only if the keeper and bowler agree.
In T20, the best LBW and caught-behind reviews come when the bowler, the keeper and the slip fielders all appeal together, with confidence. If only the bowler appeals, and the keeper shakes his head, the review is likely to fail. Captains who review on the bowler's appeal alone often lose a review early, and then have no review left for a clear mistake later.

Save at least one review for the death overs.
In T20, the last five overs are when wickets matter most, and when a wrong LBW or a missed edge can decide the match. A team that uses both reviews in the powerplay, on marginal appeals, has no protection in the death overs. A team that saves one review for the 16th to 20th overs can challenge a decision that would otherwise cost it the match.

Do not review a wide or a no-ball in a T20I.
In a T20I, you cannot review a wide or a no-ball on its own, because a player review can only be used on whether a batter is out. In the IPL, you can review a wide or no-ball, but even there, you should only do it if the wide or no-ball call was clearly wrong and the run or ball matters — for example, a wide on the last ball of a chase, or a no-ball that should have been a free hit.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is DRS in cricket?
The Decision Review System, the technology-assisted process that lets a batter or a fielding captain challenge an on-field umpire's decision on whether a batter is out, using ball tracking, edge detection and video replays.

How many DRS reviews in T20?
Two unsuccessful reviews per team per innings in T20Is and ODIs, three in Tests, under the current ICC playing conditions as of October 2026. A successful review is retained, and an umpire's call result does not count as unsuccessful.

How long do you have to review?
15 seconds from the ball becoming dead, by making a T-shape with both arms. Late requests are declined.

Who can review?
The batter, if he has been given out, or the fielding captain, if the batter has been given not out.

What is umpire's call?
When ball tracking shows the ball only clipping the stumps, within a margin of uncertainty, the on-field decision stands, and the team does not lose its review. It applies specifically to LBW reviews, and the exact criteria differ by zone.

What is Hawk-Eye ball tracking?
A system using multiple high-speed cameras to track the ball's path and predict where it would have gone after hitting the pad, to judge pitching, impact and whether it would have hit the stumps.

What is UltraEdge?
Sound-based edge detection, using a stump microphone and video synchronisation, to show a spike when the ball touches the bat. It is also called Real-Time Snicko.

Can you review a wide or no-ball in T20?
In T20Is, no — a player review can only be used on whether a batter is out. In the IPL, since 2023, teams can also review wide and no-ball calls.

What happens if the third umpire cannot tell?
If the replays are inconclusive, the on-field decision stands.

What changed in DRS in 2026?
Not the 15-second timer. The changes were a revised caught-to-LBW secondary check that can preserve an original “out” on umpire's call, combined reviews checked in chronological order, and a fairness-of-catch check on no-balls.

Does DRS apply in a Super Over?
Yes. Each team is allowed one unsuccessful Player Review in each innings of a Super Over, irrespective of how many unsuccessful reviews it used during the match itself.

Final thoughts

DRS in T20 is not about replacing umpires with technology. It is about giving umpires more evidence than they would have from watching a delivery in real time, and giving teams a limited chance to correct a clear mistake.

With two unsuccessful reviews per innings, a 15-second timer, and umpire's call as a built-in margin of error, DRS rewards teams that review with confidence, not with hope. A batter who knows he hit the ball, a captain whose keeper and bowler both appeal, and a team that saves a review for the death overs will get more from DRS than a team that reviews every close appeal and loses both reviews by the 10th over.

Ball tracking, UltraEdge and Hot Spot can help correct clear mistakes, but they do not remove every close call. Umpire's call exists because ball tracking is a prediction, not a certainty, and in marginal cases, the on-field decision stands.

If you understand that — two reviews, 15 seconds, no-ball first, then edge, then ball tracking, and umpire's call keeps your review — you will understand DRS when it happens in a T20, whether it is in Christchurch, Auckland, Hamilton, or a World Cup final.

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