Piloo Reporter First Among Neutral Umpires in Test Match Cricket, Dead

Indian  cricket umpire Piloo reporter who was one of the first to officiate as a neutral umpire in a Test match died on 3 September 2023 in Mumbai. He was 84. He was suffering from cerebral contusions and was bedridden for a long time. 

Neutral Umpire in International Cricket 

Piloo Reporter and fellow India umpire V K Ramaswamy officiated in a test match played at Lahore, Pakistan  between Pakistan and West Indies in November 1986. It was for the first time that neutral umpires officiated in international cricket.  

The initiative to appoint neutral umpires was taken by Pakistan’s captain Imran Khan to dispel the notion that Pakistani umpires are biased against the foreign teams. 

Later on the International cricket Council (ICC), the governing body of international cricket, introduced the concept of neutral umpire in test cricket . Initially one neutral umpire per test was introduced by the ICC in 1992 . 

After its success ,the ICC introduced two neutral umpires in test cricket for the first time in 2002 during the India West Indies test match played at  Georgetown, Guyana. 

Record of Piloo Reporter 

Pilo Reporter made his debut as a test umpire in the match between England and India held in New Delhi in 1984. 

Piloo Reporter officiated in 14 Tests and 22 One Day Internationals(ODI), which included the 1992 World Cup held in Australia and New Zealand. He was the only Indian umpire in the tournament.

International Cricket Council (ICC)

Headquarters: Dubai, United Arab Emirates 

Chairman of ICC: Greg Barclay of New Zealand 

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ICC: Geoff Allardice of Australia

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ICC- International Cricket Council