Dubai: The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday announced the names of match officials for the U19 Cricket World Cup 2020, which will be staged in South Africa from January 17 to February 9.
New Zealand's Wayne Knights and Ravindra Wimalasiri of Sri Lanka - who have taken charge of 71 ODI and T20I matches between them - will take charge of the opening match of the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup when hosts South Africa play against Afghanistan in Kimberley on January 17.
Rashid Riaz Waqar will be the TV umpire for the first 48 games of the tournament. A 19-strong team of match officials has also been confirmed by the ICC.
Among those taking charge will be veteran Ian Gould, whose senior international career came to an end when he retired during the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019 on home soil.
He will join forces with Ahmad Shah Pakteen for the match in which India begin the defence of their title against Sri Lanka at Bloemfontein, one of five group-stage matches that Gould 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 ICC Men's T20 World Cup Qualifier late last year, including Sam Nogajski - who was on duty for the final between Papua New Guinea and the Netherlands.
The Australian will officiate on a historic occasion when Japan play their first match in the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup against New Zealand at Potchefstroom. Iknow Chabi, of Zimbabwe, will join Nogajski out in the middle.
Nigeria will become the 31st 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 officiate 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.
ICC Senior Manager - Umpires and Referees, Adrian Griffith said in a statement: "The U19 Cricket World Cup is a very important event in our calendar as it brings together the world's most promising young players in a major ICC tournament, giving them the experience of competing on the global stage."
"We are committed to appointing the finest officials available and I have every confidence in the team travelling to South Africa for the U19 Cricket World Cup they will do a fine job. I wish them all the best," he added.
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.
The appointments of umpires and match referees 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.
