The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the appointment of 20 match officials for the Cricket World Cup league stage. This group consists of 16 umpires and four match referees. Among them, 12 are part of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires, including Christopher Gaffaney, Kumar Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Michael Gough, Nitin Menon, Paul Reiffel, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Rodney Tucker, Joel Wilson, Ahsan Raza, and Adrian Holdstock. The remaining four belong to the ICC Emerging Umpire Panel and include Sharfuddoula Ibne Shahid, Paul Wilson, Alex Wharf, and Chris Brown.
Notably, three umpires from the 2019 Cricket World Cup final, Dharmasena, Erasmus, and Tucker, are part of this experienced group. However, Aleem Dar, who officiated in the 2019 final, will not be participating in this World Cup as he stepped down from the Elite Panel earlier this year.
In addition, the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees for the event comprises Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Richie Richardson, and Javagal Srinath, all of whom are former international players.
The officials for the tournament opener between England and New Zealand on October 5th have also been named. Dharmasena and Menon will serve as the on-field umpires, with Paul Wilson as the TV umpire and Sharfuddoula as the fourth umpire. Andy Pycroft will be the match referee.
Also read: Why Yuzvendra Chahal’s non inclusion is the biggest blunder of World Cup 2023?
List of 16 Umpires & 4 Referees Announced for World Cup 2023
Umpires: Kumar Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Michael Gough, Adrian Holdstock, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nitin Menon, Ahsan Raza, Paul Reiffel, Sharfuddoula Ibne Shaid, Rod Tucker, Alex Wharf, Joel Wilson, Chris Brown, and Paul Wilson.
Match Referees: Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Richie Richardson and Javagal Srinath