“Before they decide to withdraw him from the third Test, I think he should quit,” says umpire A V Jayprakash about Steve Bucknor, his partner during his first international match in 1997, in the wake of his wrong decisions in India’s second Test against Australia.

Bucknor was also on field in Jayaprakash’s most famous game at Kotla, when Kumble got a perfect 10. And as fate would have it, Jayaprakash was the TV umpire during Bucknor’s 100th Test in 2005 at Eden Gardens.

“When players stop enjoying your umpiring, one should call it quits. I did the same. My only fear is, in case Bucknor is pulled out of the Perth Test, he will always be remembered for the mistakes he made in Sydney. All those early years when he made a reputation for himself as a top cricket umpire will go down the drain,” says 58-year-old Jayaprakash about 61-year-old Bucknor.

While there have been several instances of Bucknor’s errors going repeatedly against the Indians, Jayaprakash vividly remembers the senior umpire’s forgettable Test involving Pakistan at Eden Gardens.

Jayaprakash was the TV umpire in that game of the 2005 series. As light faded at the end of Day 3, Sachin Tendulkar was given caught behind off Abdul Razzaq. The ball seemed to have missed the bat by some margin.

“In the last few years, because of his age, he has made quite a few mistakes,” says Jayaprakash. But he is quick to add that the West Indian wasn’t quite anti-India. “I have seen the era when the Indian crowds used to love him. He was a star all over the world.”