‘Mistakes happen but…’- Umpire Steve Bucknor breaks silence on Sachin Tendulkar’s LBW storm

Tue, 24 Feb 2026 19:10:50 GMT

More than two decades after his controversial decision that disappointed several Indian fans, the former umpire Steve Bucknor has admitted that he didn’t get the dismissal decision against Sachin Tendulkar, which remains the talk of the town. Bucknor retired in 2009 and remains one of the finest umpires in international cricket.

Steve Bucknor had several controversial decisions, but the most talked-about was the one from the Gabba Test in Brisbane from the 2003-04 Border-Gavaskar Trophy when he raised his finger to send back Tendulkar. He was batting on three when Jason Gillespi loudly asked for the leg before the wicket.

“In life, mistakes happen. Giving Sachin Tendulkar out leg before wicket, and it's a matter of knowing that it was a mistake, but until this day, every day, people talk about it. Why did I give him out? Was he out and so on? But then in life, mistakes happen. I have accepted that it was a mistake, and life goes on.” Bucknor expressed this while giving an interview to the West Indies Cricket Umpires’ Association.

Steve Bucknow yet to forget wrong dismissal against Sachin Tendulkar

Many experts criticized the call, as commentator Tony Greig described it as a dreadful decision. The match itself ended in a draw, with the former Indian captain, Sourav Ganguly, scoring a fine knock of 144. That was not the only wrong decision from Bucknor, who gave a wrong caught behind off Abdul Razzaq at the Eden Gardens in 2005.

In 2024, there was a fan interaction with Tendulkar, who claimed that he would love to give boxing gloves to Bucknor if he stood as the umpire when he came to bat. Bucknor stood in 128 Tests between 1989 and 2009 and officiated in five straight World Cup finals from 1992 to 2007, a record that shows how respected he was in the cricketing world.

Bucknor is not part of the job at the moment and stays at home in Jamaica, and perhaps stands in a few club games as the umpire if required. This interaction, though, has gone viral.

'Give him boxing gloves...'- Sachin Tendulkar makes honest confession on Steve Bucknor's umpiring

Tue, 26 Aug 2025 12:28:21 GMT

The relationship between batters and umpires is a mix of sweet and sour. In the case of the legendary batter, Sachin Tendulkar, and the West Indies umpire, Steve Bucknor, it was one way around. There were several decisions that saw him get dismissed in the pre-DRS era. There was the worst video of Tendulkar being adjudged leg before the stumps against the short ball.

During Tendulkar’s first-ever ‘Ask Me Anything’ session on Reddit, the India batter shared his true feelings towards Bucknor when a fan wanted to know his feelings. On more than one occasion, the West Indies umpire controversially ruled the legendary batter out when replays suggested otherwise.

“Any comments for Steve Bucknor?'. "When I am batting, give him boxing gloves to wear (so he can't raise his finger,” Tendulkar answers the fan’s question. The first flashpoint came at the Gabba in 2003 when he didn’t offer a shot to Jason Gillespie, which stuck him on the pads as Bucknor raised his finger to the surprise of everyone present in the ground.

Sachin Tendulkar shares true feelings on Steve Bucknor’s umpiring

The saga continued at Eden Gardens against Pakistan. Abdul Razzaq’s delivery went past Tendulkar’s bat without making any contact, to which Bucknor responded by raising his finger as Tendulkar got dismissed caught behind. His irritation was clear as he walked back to the pavilion with frustration.

Even years later, the memories are still fresh. Last year, the right-handed experienced batter amused the fans on social media platforms with a very cheeky post that many took as a playful dig at the Jamaica-born. Besides sharing the photo of himself in a stance before three tree trunks lined up like stumps, Tendulkar added, ‘Can you guess which umpire made the stumps feel big?’ in the caption.

Tendulkar finished as the leading run-getter across formats. The right-handed batter has smashed 34357 runs in 782 innings at an average of 48.52 and a strike rate of 67.58, with the help of 100 centuries and 164 half-centuries at the best score of unbeaten 248 runs against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).