The Pakistan Cricket Board today announced its panel of match officials for the expanded 2023-24 cricket season, which will see the return of regional and departmental cricket after four years, thus, substantially increasing the number of matches. Ninety-seven First XI matches were held in the 2022-23 cricket season alone, but following the restoration of the PCB Constitution 2014, around 200 First XI matches will be held in the 2023-24 season.

To cater for the enhanced requirement and following an annual appraisal process, the PCB has increased the number of match officials in each category. This will provide more opportunities to the match officials under the current system and also increases the earning chances after the PCB decided to increase the monthly retainers of the elite and supplementary panel by 20 per cent.

Additionally, the PCB has also increased match fees, daily allowances and retirement benefits of the match officials by 20 per cent.In the elite panel of match referees, the PCB has added seven officials to raise the tally to 13. The seven new officials, who have been promoted, are: Aleem Khan Moosa, Athar Laiq, Bilal Khiljee, Kamran Chaudhry, Khalid Jamshed, Mohammad Aslam and Sohail Idrees.

Similarly, and envisaging eight first-class matches will run concurrently, the PCB had increased the pool of elite umpires from 14 to 23. The nine match officials, who have been promoted from the supplementary to elite panel are: Abdul Moqeet, Aslam Bareach, Farooq Ali Khan, Ghulam Sarwar, Imranullah Aslam, Kashif Sohail, Majid Hussain, Qaiser Khan and Zulfiqar Jan.

In the supplementary panel, which will be involved in non-first-class and pathways cricket matches but will also be available to cover for the elite match officials in First XI matches, the PCB has promoted nine match referees. This includes Saman Zulfiqar, who becomes the first women’s match referee to rise to this level. Others are: Abu-al-Hasnat Rao, Allah Ditto, Fazal Akbar Shah, Ghulam Mustafa, Inamullah Khan, Muhammad Amiruddin Ansari, Samiul Haq and Sohail Khan.

Meanwhile, the PCB has also confirmed women’s and international panel of match officials.

The women’s panel of umpires includes, Afia Amin, Humairah Farah, Nazia Nazir, Riffat Mustafa, Sabahat Rasheed, Saleema Imtiaz and Shakila Rafiq, while the international panel of match officials is Aleem Dar, Asif Yaqoob, Rashid Riaz Waqar, Faisal Khan Afridi (all umpires), Muhammad Javed Malik (Multan) and Ali Naqvi (both match referees).