The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday named the match officials for the upcoming Under 19 World Cup slated to begin from January 17 in South Africa.

Wayne Knights of New Zealand and Ravindra Wimalasiri of Sri Lanka will take charge for the umpiring duties in the opening match of the tournament to be played between South Africa and Afghanistan in Kimberley.

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Rashid Riaz Waqar will be the TV umpire for the first of 48 games in the tournament.

Among those taking charge will be veteran Ian Gould, whose esteemed senior international career came to an end when he retired during the World Cup 2019 on home soil.

Gould will join forces with Ahmad Shah Pakteen when India get the defence of their title underway against Sri Lanka in Bloemfontein, one of five group-stage matches he will officiate as on-field umpire.

In all, 16 umpires from 12 different countries will be on the field for five matches each in the first stage of the U19 World Cup, with eight also performing the role of TV umpire.

The list includes five umpires who looked after the 2019 Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier late last year, including Sam Nogajski — who was on duty for the final between Papua New Guinea and Netherlands.

The Australian will take the reins for an historic occasion, with Japan playing their very first match in the World Cup when they face New Zealand in Potchefstroom. Iknow Chabi, of Zimbabwe, will join Nogajski out in the middle.

Nigeria will become the 31st different team to take part in the event when they face Australia, the second-most successful side since the competition first began in 1988 as the Youth Cricket World Cup.

Bangladesh umpire Masudur Rahman Mukul and Nigel Duguid, of West Indies, will be raising their fingers in that match, on January 20 in Kimberley.

The pool stages will also see an Ashes rivalry revisited at youth level, with Adrian Holdstock and Asif Yaqoob in the middle for Australia’s clash with England, also at Kimberley, three days later.

The 16 umpires will be joined by three match referees for the duration of the tournament, with former Sri Lanka international Graeme Labrooy officiating alongside home official Shaid Wadvalla and England’s Phil Whitticase.

Umpire and match referee appointments for the knockout stages will be announced after the teams have been confirmed. The appointments for the Plate and Super League final will be finalised after the semi-finals.

The officials for the tournament are:

Umpires: Roland Black, Ahmad Shah Pakteen, Sam Nogajski, Sharfuddoula Ibne Shahid, Ian Gould, Wayne Knights, Rashid Riaz Waqar, Anil Chaudhary, Patrick Bongani Jele, Iknow Chabi, Nigel Duguid, Ravindra Wimalasiri, Masudur Rahman Mukul, Asif Yaqoob, Leslie Reifer, Adrian Holdstock.

Match Referees: Graeme Labrooy, Shaid Wadvalla, Phil Whitticase.