On Monday, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced that umpires Kumar Dharmasena and Nitin Menon will do the on-field duties for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 season opener between England and New Zealand, which is slated to take place on October 5 in Ahmedabad.
"Kumar Dharmasena and Nitin Menon will be the on-field umpires for the opening match of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 between England and New Zealand," said a statement from ICC.
The opening clash between England and New Zealand, will see a repeat of the thrilling final four years ago where Dharmasena and Menon will be assisted by TV umpire Paul Wilson, fourth umpire Shahid Saikat and match referee Javagal Srinath. This is the first time that Menon will be standing in his first ICC Men's Cricket World Cup match. Shahid will also become the first from Bangladesh to do the umpiring duties in the competition.
Alongside Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus and Richard Kettleborough will also be returning, after serving in the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup finals in the past, in 2019 and 2015, respectively. ICC also confirmed the match referees as the likes of Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Richie Richardson, and Javagal Srinath are set to grace the event.
The World Cup 2023 is slated to take place in India from October 5. The Indian team will start their campaign by playing against Australia on October 8.
Full list of match officials for ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023:
Umpires: Chris Brown (New Zealand), Kumar Dharmasena (Sri Lanka), Marais Erasmus (South Africa), Christopher Gaffaney (New Zealand), Michael Gough (England), Adrian Holdstock (South Africa), Richard Illingworth (England), Richard Kettleborough (England), Nitin Menon (India), Ahsan Raza (Pakistan), Paul Reiffel (Australia), Sharfuddoula Ibne Shahid (Bangladesh), Rodney Tucker (Australia), Alex Wharf (England), Joel Wilson (West Indies) and Paul Wilson (Australia).
Match Referees: Jeff Crowe (New Zealand), Andy Pycroft (Zimbabwe), Richie Richardson (West Indies) and Javagal Srinath (India).