Emergency operation for top umpire

Crack international cricket umpire Asoka De Silva of Sri Lanka has undergone emergency surgery for a medical condition that makes him stick his finger in the air at the most inopportune of times.
De Silva's manager said the rare ailment, known as ISDE (involuntary skyward digital extension), was not unlike carpal tunnel. A small surgical manoeuvre in both cases ensures such involuntary actions were eliminated.
"Luckily the involuntary reactions to date have came just as batsmen were clearly and obviously out," he said. "But he's aware that his future as a Test umpire could be prejudiced if it happened at the wrong time.
"He would like one day to emulate the great Dicky Bird, who proved you could remain a great Test umpire over several decades simply by never, ever, raising your finger."
Medical experts also believed de Silva's problem, while largely a physical one, had been aggravated by stress.
"Judicating cricket at the highest level is very stressful," the surgeon who operated on the raised ringer said. "Perhaps this wouldn't have happened if De Silva had been allowed to umpire at much lower grades first before being given his chance at Test level.
"It's also clearly very stressful when very tall and very agitated black men shout at you all the time - and rightly or wrongly - de Silva's finger reacts accordingly."
Australian middle-order batsman, Darren Lehmann, who was given out by De Silva as he made his way to the crease on day two of the first Test, welcomed news of the operation.