LAHORE: With women’s cricket on the rise in Pakistan, more and more females are getting drawn towards the game every day, which is also springing up their interest in taking the field as umpires.

In the Pakistan Cricket Board umpires’ panel, there are presently nine female umpires — belonging from both rural and urban centres of the country. They are at the forefront of the drive to ensure women’s representation on the cricket field continues to increase with females acting as umpires.

Five of them — Afia Amin, Humaira Farah, Nazia Nazir, Sabahat Rasheed and Shakila Rafiq – were amongst those who attended a workshop in Lahore, which concluded on Tuesday.

“The remaining four umpires namely Nuzhat Sultana, Riffat Mustafa, Samera Aftab and Saleema Imtiaz, will attend workshops in Karachi and Rawalpindi from Aug 29-31 and Sept 3-5, respectively during the ongoing PCB panel umpires and match referees annual workshop,” a PCB press release stated.

“The purpose of these workshops is to bring match officials across the country up-to-date with the latest laws of the game, PCB domestic playing conditions, code of conduct and clothing equipment regulations ahead of the 2019-20 domestic season,” it said.

In the Lahore workshop, lectures were given by top-flight umpires, including Aleem Dar from the Elite Panel of ICC umpires, and Ahsan Raza and Asif Yaqoob, both members of International panel of ICC umpires.

The female umpires welcomed the decision to conduct such workshops.

Afia, a master’s degree holder, said: “I come from a conservative family, but my husband provided me all the support that I needed.”

Humaira, who is director sports at Lahore Garrison University and is pursuing Ph.D degree, said: “PCB’s step to train umpires ahead of the season is praiseworthy. I aim to make the most of this workshop so I can have the honour of umpiring in an international women’s game.”

Nazia, who lectures on physical education at Government Township College in Lahore, said: “I couldn’t pursue my dream of becoming a cricketer due to family restrictions. Being an umpire provided me with an opportunity to return to cricket field.”

Sabahat, a former Pakistan international player, said: “Umpiring is a totally different profession and requires comprehensive understanding and knowledge of the laws of the game.”

Shakila, a Master’s degree holder, said: “I idolise Aleem Dar. He has officiated innumerable matches and I look to make the most from his expansive experience of officiating top-flight international cricket.”

Published in Dawn, August 31st, 2019