The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday named four women in a strong field of nine umpires to officiate in next months Women's World Cup Qualifier in its continued efforts and commitment to the overall growth and development of women's cricket.
The February 7-21 event in Colombo will see the experienced Kathleen Cross of New Zealand lead the group of women umpires who all have international experience and are being groomed for more future responsibilities by the ICC, according to a release.
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Cross, who was the first woman to be named in an ICC umpires' panel in 2014 when she was named in the Associates and Affiliates panel, is the most experienced of the four officials with Sue Redfern of England, Claire Polosak of Australia and Jacqueline Williams of the West Indies the other women figuring in the list of umpires.
The five men umpires in the 14-day tournament include Anil Chaudhary, Leslie Reifer, Raveendra Wimalasari (all from the Emirates International Panel of ICC Umpires), Ian Ramage and Mark Hawthorne (both from the ICC Associate and Affiliate International Umpires). Graeme Labrooy will be the match referee, while Peter Manuel will be the umpires coach.
With the ICC Women's World Cup 2017 to be staged in England and Wales from 24 June to 23 July, the Colombo event will provide an opportunity for the women umpires to push their casefor inclusion in the pinnacle women's event.
