CA expects to have DRS for the women's Ashes

Cricket Australia has confirmed it expects the Decision Review System to be available in this summer's women's Ashes after two controversial calls on day three of the one-off Test against India brought the absence of the DRS into focus.

Fighting to keep Australia in the match, captain Meg Lanning was forced to depart on 38 when she was adjudged lbw after being hit on the pad by a delivery from Pooja Vastrakar, only for replays to show she had edged the ball first.

Earlier, India's Deepti Sharma was given out lbw on 66 to Australia quick Stella Campbell, with ball tracking showing the delivery had pitched outside the line of leg stump.

A CA spokesperson said on Saturday it had intended to use the technology for the entire multi-format series against India, but the late relocation of all matches to Mackay and the Gold Coast, and logistical problems like border closures, had made it impossible.

"I'd love to see (DRS)," Australia wicketkeeper-batter Alyssa Healy said after stumps on Saturday.

"Obviously there were a few logistical nightmares to be able to have it here with the venue shift but I'd love to see it in every Test match. It makes it nice and fair and even.

"The umpires don't mean to make mistakes. We're out there as players, we make mistakes on the regular.

"But to take out the howler would be a nice thing."

The DRS has never previously been used in a women's bilateral series in Australia.

The current Test on the Gold Coast is also the first time a women's Test has been broadcast on television in Australia this century, while bilateral ODIs in the country have only been consistently televised since the 2017 Ashes.

The lack of DRS means while the third umpire can use broadcast replays to make decisions on umpire reviews, including run outs, stumpings, clean catches and no balls – as was the case in the controversial end to the second ODI in Mackay, when Jhulan Goswami's delivery to Nicola Carey was adjudged to be a no ball – there is no avenue for players to challenge an on-field decision.

Australia will host England in the multi-format Ashes from late January, with matches scheduled to be played in Canberra, Sydney, Adelaide and Melbourne.

CA confirmed it intended to make the DRS available for all seven games.

While the DRS has been part of men's internationals for more than a decade, it was used in the women's game for the first time during the 2017 ODI World Cup, where it was available for the ten broadcast matches.

Since then, it has been a feature of every match of the last two ICC Women's T20 World Cups but has rarely been employed in bilateral women's series.

New Zealand have used it on occasions, including a home series against India in 2019, while it was introduced for England women's matches for the first time for a T20I series against the West Indies in 2019, with the ECB making an ongoing commitment to using the technology.

That decision followed outcry during the 2019 Ashes, when England batter Fran Wilson was incorrectly given out lbw despite replays showing the ball hit her glove rather than her pad.

Under the ICC's playing conditions for women's T20Is and ODIs, it is at the discretion of participating boards to using DRS, mirroring the position in men's playing conditions for both limited-overs formats.

The recent series between Pakistan's and New Zealand's men's teams, which was ultimately cancelled due to security issues, would not have featured the DRS as Pakistan officials and the home broadcaster were unable to find an ICC-approved technology provider. As a result, the two teams decided that the matches would not be played for points as part of the ODI Super League, which acts as a qualifier for the next World Cup.

Both boards can agree to use the DRS if the minimum requirements for its use – approved ball-tracking technology, and approved sound-based edge detection technology – are satisfied.

The ICC does not cover the considerable cost of these technologies, which instead fall to either host broadcasters or host boards.

CommBank Series v India

Australia lead India 4-2 on points

Australia squad: Meg Lanning (c), Darcie Brown, Maitlan Brown, Stella Campbell, Nicola Carey, Hannah Darlington, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy, Tahlia McGrath, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Georgia Redmayne, Molly Strano, Annabel Sutherland, Tayla Vlaeminck, Georgia Wareham

India Test and ODI squad: Mithali Raj (c), Harmanpreet Kaur (vc), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Punam Raut, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Yastika Bhatia, Taniya Bhatia (wk), Shikha Pandey, Jhulan Goswami, Meghna Singh, Pooja Vastrakar, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav, Richa Ghosh, Ekta Bisht.

India T20I squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Yastika Bhatia, Shikha Pandey, Meghna Singh, Pooja Vastrakar, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav, Richa Ghosh (wk), Harleen Deol, Arundhati Reddy, Radha Yadav, Renuka Singh.

First ODI:Australia won by nine wickets

Sep 24: Australia won by five wickets

Sep 26: India won by two wickets

Sep 30 – Oct 3: Test match, Metricon Stadium, Gold Coast (D/N)

Oct 7: First T20, Metricon Stadium, Gold Coast

Oct 9: Second T20, Metricon Stadium, Gold Coast

Oct 10: Third T20, Metricon Stadium, Gold Coast