The Elite Panel of ICC Umpires is a panel of cricket umpires appointed by the International Cricket Council to officiate in Test matches and One Day Internationals around the world. The panel was first established in April 2002 when the ICC decided to reform the way that international cricket was umpired. The main change was that both umpires in a Test match and one of the umpires in a One Day International were now independent of the competing nations, whereas before 2002 just one of the umpires in a Test was independent and in ODIs both umpires were from the home nation. The majority of these ICC appointments are fulfilled by the members of the Elite Panel, who are generally thought to be the best umpires in the world. As such the ICC hopes to ensure that umpiring standards are as high as possible. Members of the panel stand in around 10 Tests and 15 ODIs each year.[1] The list of umpires in the panel is revised every year by the ICC Umpires Selection Panel.
The panel was formed in 2002 with eight members.[2] Peter Willey was invited to be on the panel, but declined the opportunity because it would have required him to spend too much time away from his family.[3] The last members of the original panel retired in 2011. The original eight panel members were: Steve Bucknor, Daryl Harper, Ashoka de Silva, Srinivas Venkataraghavan, Rudi Koertzen, Dave Orchard, David Shepherd and Russell Tiffin.
Members of the International Panel of ICC Umpires stand in ODIs in their home countries, and may be appointed by the ICC to Tests and ODIs as an independent officials at busy times in the cricket calendar to supplement the Elite Panel. The best performing umpires may earn promotion to the Elite Panel. Emirates sponsors the panel, and the umpires are required to wear shirts and coats which have 'Fly Emirates' printed on them whenever they are officiating.[4]
In July 2019, Michael Gough and Joel Wilson were added to the Elite panel following the retirement of Ian Gould and exclusion of Sundaram Ravi after the 2019 Cricket World Cup.[5] On 16 March 2023, Ahsan Raza and Adrian Holdstock joined the panel after Aleem Dar stepped down from the panel.[6]
In March 2024, Sharfuddoula was added to the Elite Panel after South African umpire Marais Erasmus retired from umpiring in international cricket and thus Sharfuddoula became the first umpire from Bangladesh to be included in this panel.[7]
, Australia and England have jointly provided the most panel members with seven. South Africa with four, India, Pakistan, New Zealand, and West Indies have provided three; Sri Lanka has provided two; Zimbabwe and Bangladesh has provided just one member. No members have featured from Afghanistan and Ireland, among the Full members.
cricket season the Elite Panel consists of:[8] [9] [10] [11]
| Umpire | Date of Birth | Age as of | Year Appointed | Tests[12] | ODIs[13] | T20Is[14] | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rod Tucker | 28 August 1964 | 2010 | 88 | 102 | 58 |  Australia | |
| Kumar Dharmasena | 24 April 1971 | 2011 | 83 | 127 | 47 |  Sri Lanka | |
| Richard Kettleborough | 15 March 1973 | 2011 | 83 | 107 | 40 | England | |
| Richard Illingworth | 23 August 1963 | 2013 | 69 | 90 | 35 | England | |
| Paul Reiffel | 19 April 1966 | 2013 | 66 | 90 | 33 | Australia | |
| Chris Gaffaney | 30 November 1975 | 2015 | 54 | 86 | 50 |  New Zealand | |
| Michael Gough | 18 December 1979 | 2019 | 35 | 86 | 28 | England | |
| Joel Wilson | 30 December 1966 | 2019 | 40 | 92 | 50 | West Indies | |
| Nitin Menon | 2 November 1983 | 2020 | 25 | 58 | 48 |  India | |
| Ahsan Raza | 29 May 1974 | 2023 | 13 | 53 | 82 |  Pakistan | |
| Adrian Holdstock | 27 April 1970 | 2023 | 11 | 59 | 55 |  South Africa | |
| Sharfuddoula | 16 October 1976 | 2024 | 11 | 63 | 52 |  Bangladesh | |
The first departures from the panel came in 2004 when Srinivas Venkataraghavan (known as Venkat) retired,[15] and Asoka de Silva, Dave Orchard and Russell Tiffin did not have their contracts renewed.[16] David Shepherd retired in 2005 following 22 years as an international umpire.[17] Darrell Hair, who joined the panel in 2003, was banned from officiating in matches involving full ICC members following the ball tampering controversy in August 2006.[18] In March 2008, following a spell officiating associate members, Hair was once again permitted to umpire full members,[19] but in August he handed in his resignation after he was only allowed to officiate in two Tests.[20]
Steve Bucknor retired in 2009, having stood in a then record 128 Tests since March 1989.[21] Rudi Koertzen retired in 2010,[22] while Mark Benson, who had joined the panel in 2006, stood down to return to domestic cricket.[23] Asoka de Silva, who rejoined the panel in 2008, was stood down again in 2011 along with Daryl Harper,[24] Simon Taufel and Billy Doctrove retired in 2012[25] and Steve Davis retired in 2015. Sundaram Ravi was dropped from the panel after 2019 Cricket World Cup.[26] Ian Gould retired from the panel after the 2019 World Cup.[27] Bruce Oxenford retired from the panel in 2021.[28]
Former elite panel members can still umpire in ODIs and international T20s. Statistics correct as of 31 January 2021.
| Umpire | Date of Birth | Joined Panel | Left Panel | Tests | ODIs | T20Is | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 May 1946 | 2002 | 2009 | 128 | 181 | – | West Indies | ||
| Asoka de Silva^ | 28 March 1956 | 2002 | 2011 | 49 | 121 | 11 | Sri Lanka | |
| 23 October 1951 | 2002 | 2011 | 94 | 174 | 10 | Australia | ||
| 26 March 1949 | 2002 | 2010 | 108 | 206 | 14 | South Africa | ||
| 24 June 1948 | 2002 | 2004 | 44 | 107 | – | South Africa | ||
| 27 December 1940 | 2002 | 2005 | 92 | 172 | – | England | ||
| 4 June 1959 | 2002 | 2004 | 44 | 126 | 4 |  Zimbabwe | ||
| 21 April 1945 | 2002 | 2004 | 73 | 52 | – | India | ||
| Darrell Hair | 30 September 1952 | 2003 | 2008 | 78 | 135 | 6 | Australia | |
| Billy Doctrove | 3 July 1955 | 2006 | 2012 | 38 | 112 | 17 | West Indies | |
| Mark Benson | 6 July 1958 | 2006 | 2010 | 27 | 72 | 19 | England | |
| Simon Taufel | 21 January 1971 | 2003 | 2012 | 74 | 174 | 34 | Australia | |
| Tony Hill | 26 June 1951 | 2009 | 2014 | 40 | 96 | 17 | New Zealand | |
| Asad Rauf | 12 May 1956 | 2006 | 2013 | 47 | 98 | 23 | Pakistan | |
| scope=row | Billy Bowden | 11 April 1967 | 2003 | 2015 | 84 | 200 | 21 | New Zealand |
| scope=row | Steve Davis | 9 April 1952 | 2008 | 2015 | 57 | 137 | 26 | Australia |
| Ian Gould | 19 August 1957 | 2009 | 2019 | 73 | 135 | 37 | England | |
| Sundaram Ravi | 22 April 1966 | 2010 | 2019 | 33 | 48 | 18 | India | |
| Nigel Llong | 11 February 1969 | 2012 | 2020 | 62 | 130 | 32 | England | |
| Bruce Oxenford | 5 March 1960 | 2012 | 2021 | 62 | 97 | 20 | Australia | |
| Aleem Dar | 6 June 1968 | 2004 | 2023 | 139 | 210 | 46 | Pakistan | |
| Marais Erasmus | 27 February 1964 | 2010 | 2024 | 82 | 124 | 43 | South Africa |
Most Test matches as an umpire:[29]
| Umpire | Period | Matches | TV Umpire | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003–2023 | 144 | 27 | 171 | |||||
| 1989–2009 | 128 | 2 | 130 | |||||
| 1992–2010 | 108 | 20 | 128 | |||||
| 1996–2011 | 95 | 9 | 104 | |||||
| 1985–2005 | 92 | 0 | 92 | |||||
| Last updated: 19 March 2023 | ||||||||
Most ODI matches as an umpire:[30]
| Umpire | Period | Matches | TV Umpire | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003–present | 231 | 68 | 299 | |||||
| 1992–2010 | 209 | 41 | 250 | |||||
| 1995–2016 | 200 | 59 | 259 | |||||
| 1989–2009 | 181 | 26 | 207 | |||||
| 1994–2011 | 174 | 45 | 219 | |||||
| Last updated: 19 March 2023 | ||||||||
Most T20I matches as an umpire:[31]
| Umpire | Period | Matches | TV Umpire | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010–present | 80 | 26 | 106 | |||||
| 2009–present | 72 | 19 | 91 | |||||
| - style="background:#cfc;" | ||||||||
| 2006–present | 55 | 25 | 80 | |||||
| 2011–present | 54 | 25 | 79 | |||||
| 2015–present | 60 | 19 | 79 | |||||
| Last updated: 19 June 2024 | ||||||||