The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced the match officials for the upcoming Pakistan Super League (PSL) season 9. The tournament is scheduled to take place from February 17 to March 18. The officials for the Qualifier, two eliminators, and the final, which will be held in Karachi from March 14 to 18, will be revealed later.
The match officials include four members of the ICC’s elite panel of umpires: Richard Illingworth, Chris Gaffaney, Ahsan Raza, and Michael Gough. They will be joined by Abdul Moqeet, Aleem Dar, Tariq Rasheed, Shozab Raza, Rashid Riaz, Faisal Afridi, Ruchira Palliyaguruge, Asif Yaqoob, Alex Wharf, Nasir Hussain, Imran Jawed, and Muhammad Asif, as stated in the PCB press release.
Among the foreign umpires, Richard Illingworth has previously officiated in six editions of the league, overseeing 48 matches. England’s Michael Gough, with four previous editions and 34 matches officiated, will also be part of the team. The league debutant, New Zealand’s Chris Gaffaney, will umpire his first match between Multan Sultans and Karachi Kings on February 18.
Roshan Mahanama, a former member of the ICC’s elite panel of match referees, will lead the team of three match referees, including Ali Naqvi and Muhammad Javed. The opening match between Lahore Qalandars and Islamabad United will be officiated by Aleem Dar and Michael Gough, with Tariq Rasheed as the TV Umpire and Shozab Raza as the reserve umpire. Muhammad Javed will be the match referee for the game.
PSL 9 will take place in four cities: Karachi, Lahore, Multan, and Rawalpindi, with the final scheduled at the National Bank Stadium in Karachi on March 18. The tournament will be held in two legs, with matches in Multan and Lahore from February 17 to 27, followed by games in Rawalpindi and Karachi from February 28 to March 12, and the playoffs exclusively in Karachi.
