Match officials named for U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2026
The International Cricket Council has confirmed the match officials who will officiate at the U19 Men's Cricket World Cup, to be held in Zimbabwe and Namibia.
A total of 17 umpires and four match referees from the Emirates ICC International Panels of Umpires and Referees have been appointed for the upcoming ICC Men's U19 Cricket World Cup, with officials representing 13 different nationalities for the tournament kicking off on January 15.
The umpiring panel includes two officials from the host nation Zimbabwe, with former international cricketer Forster Mutizwa, who played 21 matches across formats for Zimbabwe, set to officiate alongside compatriot Iknow Chabi.
The officiating group also features several experienced figures, including former West Indies international Deighton Butler, and England’s Graham Lloyd, who follows in the footsteps of his father David Lloyd, a respected former umpire who later became a renowned broadcaster.
The four match referees appointed for the tournament are Dean Cosker (England), Prakash Bhatt (India), Graeme Labrooy (Sri Lanka) and Neeyamur Rahul (Bangladesh), all of whom bring significant international experience to the event.
India v Australia | Match Highlights | U19 CWC 2024
Australia defeated India by 79 runs to lift the ICC U19 Men's Cricket World Cup 2024.
The ICC CEO Sanjog Gupta said: “This ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup is a tremendous opportunity for rising stars in the game to shine, but it is also an invaluable reward system for up-and-coming match officials.
“We hope that this will be the perfect springboard for their careers as we see them progress in their officiating journeys.”
Match officials for the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2026
Umpires:
Ahmad Shah Durrani (Afghanistan), Aidan Seaver (Ireland), Cory Black (New Zealand), Deighton Butler (West Indies), Faisal Afridi (Pakistan), Forster Mutizwa (Zimbabwe), Graham Lloyd (England), Iknow Chabi (Zimbabwe), Lubabalo Gcuma (South Africa), Masudur Mukul (Bangladesh), Nitin Bathi (Netherlands), Prageeth Rambukwella (Sri Lanka), Russell Warren (England), Shaun Haig (New Zealand), Shawn Craig (Australia), Virender Sharma (India), Zahid Bassarath (West Indies)
Referees:
Dean Cosker (England), Graeme La Brooy (Sri Lanka), Neeyamur Rahul (Bangladesh), Prakash Bhatt (India)