England's captain Heather Knight expressed her disappointment over the absence of the DRS technology in the one-off Test against South Africa at Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein.
Knight said that the absence of the Decision Review System (DRS) was a "real shame" and a "sign of the status of this (women's) game".
Notably, DRS was available during the three-match ODI and T20I series and as per Enoch Nkwe, South Africa's director of national teams and high performance, the decision not to have the technology during the Test match was a mutual one.
"I was pretty shocked when I found out in the umpire's meeting the day before, that we weren't going to have it," Knight was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo. "I think it's a real shame. You come to expect it as a player now, and I guess the reason is always money. But, particularly in Test cricket, where wickets are such a premium, it's a really important thing to have. It's probably a sign of the status of this game, maybe, that we didn't have it, which is a bit frustrating."
Though the absence of the DRS technology didn't play a major role in deciding the outcome of the game as England won the match by 286 runs, there were a few decisions that appeared contentious and went against the hosts.
South Africa's newly appointed coach, Mandla Mashimbyi was also left bewildered by the absence of the DRS during the red-ball contest.
"There was no communication and I didn't understand why," Mashimbyi said. "It was quite bizarre. But the umpires feel they made the right decision and we can't go against that."
"We make do with what we have. Our job is to make sure we play good cricket. Those are things we can't control. Obviously, we will be disappointed with certain decisions but we can't change what has happened. There are people that will be dealing with that, who are outside this room at the moment. If I leave it to myself, it might not be nice."
