Aleem Dar surpasses Rudi Koertzen's record for most ODIs as on-field umpire
Nov 01, 2020
Rawalpindi [Pakistan], November 1 : A member of the Elite Panel of ICC Umpires, Aleem Dar, on Sunday surpassed retired South African umpire Rudi Koertzen for officiating in the most ODIs as an on-field umpire.
The 52-year-old from Pakistan achieved the feat when he officiated the second match between Pakistan and Zimbabwe on Sunday, which is also his 210th ODI.
Aleem was awarded a special memento to mark his record-breaking 210th ODI appearance as an umpire, before the start of the play
Aleem, who played first-class cricket in Pakistan for over a decade as an all-rounder before taking up umpiring, had also made his ODI debut in Pakistan, when he stood in a match against Sri Lanka in his hometown of Gujranwala in February 2000.
"It is a matter of great honour for me to be on the top of the list of both Tests and ODIs for umpires," Aleem Dar said in an ICC release.
"When I had started out in the profession, I had never imagined I would get this far. I can only say that I have enjoyed every moment on the field and learning has been an ongoing process all this while," he added.
Last year, Aleem passed his idol Steve Bucknor to the top of the Test umpires' list. He holds the record of officiating in 132 Test matches and is second in the list of T20Is, only behind compatriot Ahsan Raza, with 46 T20Is. Aleem has officiated in 387 international matches so far, the most by any umpire.
"I thank my family for standing by me over the years and am grateful to the International Cricket Council and the Pakistan Cricket Board for backing me and providing me with all the opportunities. I am also thankful to all my colleagues match officials for their help and support," said Aleem.
Pakistan defeated Zimbabwe in the first ODI by 26 runs.
