In a historic first, the International Cricket Council has announced that all match officials for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 would be women. The eighth edition of the Women’s T20 World Cup will include 13 female officials, breaking the previous record of nine female match officials at the current ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup 2023.

ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Match officials

We look at the whole list of those 13 match officials, some of them are well-known figures in the field:

Anna Harris

The 24-year-old English umpire is also a medical student. This will be her first World Cup as a match official, but she has plenty of experience. She made her top-flight debut in 2020 and has since appeared in internationals and Hundred fixtures. She is the event’s youngest match official.

Claire Polosak

Claire Polosak from Australia has a wealth of expertise. She made her debut in a men’s club game in 2008/09 and has since played in both men’s and women’s international matches. She has already officiated in a number of ICC competitions, beginning with the Women’s T20 World Cup in 2016. The seasoned umpire has a long list of “firsts” to her credit. In 2017, she became Australia’s first female umpire to stand in a men’s domestic match. She became the first female umpire to stand in a men’s ODI two years later. During India’s 2020/21 tour of Australia, she served as the fourth umpire in the third and fourth Tests. As a result, she became the first female match official to take part in a men’s Test match.

Eloise Sheridan

Eloise Sheridan and her colleague Polosak were the first female umpiring duo to officiate in a competitive game on Australian soil. This occurred during the 2018/19 WBBL season. She has umpired in both men’s and women’s cricket, and this season she made her men’s List A debut as an umpire in a Marsh Cup match. She has umpired at all levels of international women’s cricket.

G.S. Lakshmi

G.S. Lakshmi of India was a domestic cricketer for 18 years before going to umpiring. In 2008/09, she started her second stint as a match official. She went on to umpire in all forms of women’s cricket before being named to the International Panel of ICC Match Referees as the first woman. She has now officiated in men’s ODIs and T20Is as well. She has recently appeared in the ICC Women’s One-Day International World Cup 2022, the Commonwealth Games 2022, and the current season of the BCCI’s men’s first-class event, the Ranji Trophy.

Jacqueline Williams

Jacqueline Williams of Jamaica is a well-known local and international umpire. She was one of four female umpires to compete in the 2015 ICC Women’s World T20 Qualifier. She was also the first female umpire in the West Indies men’s domestic List A competition. She made her debut as an umpire in men’s ODIs and T20Is in 2019. She was the first female umpire in a men’s international.

N Janani

N Janani, who was inducted into the International Panel of ICC Development Umpires in 2020, will be attending her maiden World Cup. She has international experience, having played in women’s ODIs and T20Is. She has also umpired in India’s local T20 competitions. She was the on-field umpire for a Ranji Trophy match in January 2023.

Kim Cotton

Kim Cotton was one of four female umpires at the 2018 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. Cotton, a lawyer by trade, has competed in both men’s and women’s international and domestic tournaments. She has also competed in other ICC competitions since her debut, including the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup, in which she reached the final.

Lauren Agenbag

Lauren Agenbag was the first South African female umpire to stand in a women’s Twenty20 International in 2019. She did so at the age of 22, and she has made significant progress since then. She was named to the International Panel of ICC Development Umpires in May 2019 and has participated in many ICC tournaments. In October 2019, she became South Africa’s first female umpire to referee a first-class match. She was Cotton’s partner in the World Cup final last year. As a result, she became the ICC World Cup final’s youngest umpire, male or female. She will compete in her debut men’s T20I in December 2022.

Michell Pereira

Michell Pereira is a former cricketer who played for the Colombo Colts throughout her career. She was also a member of Sri Lanka’s World Cup team in 2005 as the backup wicketkeeper. Sri Lanka Cricket appointed her as a match referee in 2018. She obtained great experience in the nation at the domestic level. In July 2022, she was certified as an ICC Match Referee, and the forthcoming World Cup will be her first ICC competition.

Nimali Perera

Nimali Perera is Sri Lanka’s second match official at the event. She will be the country’s first female umpire to compete in a T20 World Cup. During her playing career, Perera represented a variety of domestic clubs in Sri Lanka. She has umpired in T20Is and most recently at the Women’s T20 Asia Cup 2022.

Shandre Fritz

Shandre Fritz has had a lengthy history with the game. She was a prolific international for South Africa, having played for the country for more than a decade. Cricket South Africa named her to the Match Referees Panel for the 2019-20 season, and she is a member of the International Panel of ICC Match Referees. She has officiated in both men’s and women’s domestic and international matches. Fritz is the only match official in the tournament who has played in a T20 World Cup.

Sue Redfern

Sue Redfern, like Fritz, has played cricket for her nation and represented her country in the ODI format in the World Cup. She began umpiring when she retired from playing. Her debut appearance for the ICC came in the World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015 in Thailand. She has since appeared in a number of ICC competitions. Redfern also serves on the ICC International Panel of Development Umpires.

Vrinda Rathi

Vrinda Rathi of India played junior cricket, having represented Mumbai University as a medium pacer before becoming a scorer.During the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2013, she was the BCCI’s official scorer. She began umpiring along the road and has officiated in a number of Women’s T20Is. She recently officiated in the Ranji Trophy match between Goa and Puducherry.