Aleem Dar's 2005 Ashes lbw decision called 'worst' ever by Damien Martyn

Former Australian batsman Damien Martyn on Monday dug up a shocking decision by Aleem Dar from the 2005 Ashes, calling it the "worst umpiring series in history".

The video shows a Steve Harmison delivery pitching outside the leg, rising and then catching Australia's left-handed batsman Simon Katich on the front pad.

It drew a loud appeal but no one expected Dar to be pay any heed - but he did raise his finger. 

Katich's reaction combined with commentators' remarks then, and Martyn's tweet now is a reminder that even the best can have a bad day at work.

When Martyn, in the same thread, did not dismiss the possibility of match-fixing and shabbily responded to a fan query with a "who knows", it showed that the former Aussie great may have been suffering from the side-effects of the COVID-19 lockdown that has led to several sports stars say stuff they don't really mean out of sheer boredom. 

Dar, as it is known, has gone on to become one of the most well-known officials and broken almost every umpiring record there is. 

His decision making has, however, suffered in recent years - the evidence of which was seen in the last Ashes series where he and his umpiring partner made some very controversial calls and caught a lot of flak.

READ: Twitter trolls target Aleem Dar for making series of uncharacteristic blunders during Ashes

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