The ICC yesterday announced the appointment of 16 umpires and four match referees for the Round 1 and Super 12 stages of the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 in the United Arab Emirates.

The selection of a 20-strong group effectively means that, for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be neutral umpires for all matches of the 16-team tournament, running from October 17 to November 14.

The first match of the tournament, between Oman and Papua New Guinea on October 17 will be officiated by Sri Lanka’s Kumar Dharmasena, alongside New Zealand’s Chris Gaffaney while Ranjan Madugalle will be the match referee.

The officiating personnel for the semi-finals and final of the tournament will be named in due course.

Match Referees: David Boon, Jeff Crowe, Ranjan Madugalle, Javagal Srinath.

Umpires: Chris Brown, Aleem Dar, Kumar Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Michael Gough, Adrian Holdstock, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nitin Menon, Ahsan Raza, Paul Reiffel, Langton Rusere, Rod Tucker, Joel Wilson and Paul Wilson. (ICC)