ICC has confirmed the list of match officials for the group stage of the upcoming T20 World Cup that is scheduled to start on February 7. A total of 24 officials will serve as on-field umpires during this period while six others will serve as the match referees from February 7 to February 20 when the group stage matches will take place. As far as the historic India vs Pakistan match is concerned, Richard Illingworth and Kumar Dharmasena, both experienced umpires, have been appointed as the on-field match officials.
The officials for the Super Eight round and the knockouts will be announced later. Kumar Dharmasena and Wayne Knights are the on-field umpires for the opening game of the tournament between Pakistan and the Netherlands at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo. This will be the first time that Knights will be officiating in the T20 World Cup while Dharmasena is a veteran when it comes to umpiring in the mega events.
The latter has officiated in 37 matches at the T20 World Cup already, including in the final of the 2016 and 2022 editions. As for Knights, the PAK vs NED clash will be his 50th T20I as an on-field umpire.
Paul Reiffel and Rod Tucker to officiate in the IND vs USA match
West Indies and Scotland will lock horns at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata from 3 PM IST on the opening day. In this game, Nitin Menon and Sam Nogajski will be the on-field umpires for this encounter, with the former being the most experienced among the two. Menon was part of the umpiring team for the first semifinal in T20 World Cup 2024. Nogajski, meanwhile, \officiated in four matches in the T20 World Cup 2024, including the India vs USA clash.
For the India vs USA match on the opening day, which is scheduled to begin at 7 PM at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, Paul Reiffel and Rod Tucker have been appointed as the on-field umpires.
Match officials at the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026
Match Referees: Dean Cosker, David Gilbert, Ranjan Madugalle, Andrew Pycroft, Richie Richardson, Javagal Srinath
Umpires: Roland Black, Chris Brown, Kumar Dharmasena, Chris Gaffaney, Adrian Holdstock, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Wayne Knights, Donovan Koch, Jayaraman Madanagopal, Nitin Menon, Sam Nogajski, KNA Padmanabhan, Allahuddien Paleker, Ahsan Raza, Leslie Reifer, Paul Reiffel, Langton Rusere, Sharfuddoula Ibne Shahid, Gazi Sohel, Rod Tucker, Alex Wharf, Raveendra Wimalasiri, Asif Yaqoob.
