New Zealand's Kathy Cross became the first woman to be inducted in an ICC umpires' panel when she was named as an Associate and Affiliate International official following the annual review and selection process.
Six Indians, including match referee Javagal Srinath, on Thursday found a place in the ICC's 31-strong Playing Control Team for next month's World Twenty20, which will also feature women match officials for the first time. "The strong Playing Control Team includes all the seven and 12 members of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Match Referees and Elite Panel of ICC Umpires, respectively, as well as 10 members of the Emirates International Panel of ICC Umpires and two members of the ICC Associate and Affiliate Panel of International Umpires," the ICC said in a statement. Srinath will be the referee in the March 8 tournament- opener between Zimbabwe and Hong Kong in Nagpur. He will lead the Playing Control Team, which also includes Aleem Dar and Ian Gould as on-field umpires, Marais Erasmus as TV umpire and Richard Illingworth as fourth umpire. The umpires' panel for the March 8 to April 3 tournament includes two female umpires -- New Zealand's Kathleen Cross and Claire Polosak of Australia. The two were also involved in the ICC Women's World Twenty20 Qualifier in Thailand.
Indian players failed to make a mark as Australians and South Africans swept the International Cricket Council's (ICC) Annual Awards with Steve Smith clinching the coveted trophies of Cricketer of the Year and the Test Cricketer of the Year.