Dubai, Jan 30 (NationPress) The International Cricket Council (ICC) revealed the match officials for the group stage of the Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, commencing on February 7. A total of 24 officials will act as on-field umpires, while six individuals will assume the role of match referees during this phase of the tournament.

Details for the Super Eight and knockout stage officials will be disclosed later.

For the inaugural match between Pakistan and the Netherlands at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo, Kumar Dharmasena and Wayne Knights will serve as the on-field umpires. This match will be a milestone for Knights, marking his first appearance in an ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, while Dharmasena continues to build on his impressive tournament track record.

Dharmasena was a significant part of Sri Lanka’s victorious ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup team in 1996. He has officiated in 37 matches at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the finals in 2016 and 2022, ranking him fourth in all-time officiating appearances in this competition.

Knights will also celebrate a significant achievement by officiating his 50th T20 International during the Group A match. On the opening day in Kolkata, Nitin Menon and Sam Nogajski will oversee the Group C match between Scotland and the West Indies.

Menon was part of the on-field umpire team for the first semi-final of the 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup featuring Afghanistan and South Africa. Nogajski officiated four group matches in the previous edition, including the one between India and the USA.

India will face the USA later on February 7 in Mumbai, with Paul Reiffel and Rod Tucker as the on-field umpires. Tucker holds the record for the most matches officiated at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, with 46 appearances to date, and is set to reach his 50th match during this tournament. The Australian will also officiate matches such as England vs. Nepal, India vs. Namibia, and South Africa vs. the United Arab Emirates.

Chris Gaffaney and Richard Illingworth, who collaborated in the 2024 final, will reunite for the Group B match between Australia and Ireland on February 11. Illingworth will also partner Dharmasena for the highly-anticipated group-stage clash between India and Pakistan in Colombo on February 15.

Match Referees:

Dean Cosker, David Gilbert, Ranjan Madugalle, Andrew Pycroft, Richie Richardson, Javagal Srinath.

Umpires:

Roland Black, Chris Brown, Kumar Dharmasena, Chris Gaffaney, Adrian Holdstock, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Wayne Knights, Donovan Koch, Jayaraman Madanagopal, Nitin Menon, Sam Nogajski, KNA Padmanabhan, Allahuddien Paleker, Ahsan Raza, Leslie Reifer, Paul Reiffel, Langton Rusere, Sharfuddoula Ibne Shahid, Gazi Sohel, Rod Tucker, Alex Wharf, Raveendra Wimalasiri, Asif Yaqoob.