Cricket: Aleem Dar Pakistan’s first ICC “umpire of the year”
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 held at Gujranwala.
His cricketing career could not take off with a first class average of 11.73 in seventeen matches. Contrary to his batting career, his umpiring career saw some immediate appreciation from different governing bodies. He was quick to impress ICC and became a member of ICC panel of umpires in 2002. He was part of the 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup where once again his performance was accurate and better than some of his counterparts. With his impressive decision making when under pressure, and the plaudits he got, it was no surprise that six months later he was part of ICC’s elite panel of umpires. He became the first Pakistani umpire to achieve this feat.
Aleem Dar got the privilege of getting nominated for best umpire award for three consecutive years in 2005, 2006 and 2007. It was only in 2007 that he won the best umpire award after losing it twice to Simon Taufel, who is also a respected and credible umpire. It took him only seven years to reach his 100th ODI as an umpire. Aleem after receiving “umpire of the year” award said: “I am very pleased to get this award,” Dar said. “Thanks to the PCB and ICC, as well as my friends and family and of course my wife, who I have to leave for long periods of time. Normally I am quite calm and so the pressure is not big for me. It is important to stay cool and if you make a mistake you can’t let it get to you. You have to concentrate all the time”.
He attained this triumph in a record time. He is the first Pakistani to have this achievement to his name. To his credit, he has the honour of standing in 2007 Cricket World Cup final that was played between http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 and Sri Lanka. He along with Rudi Koertzen officiated ICC Champions Trophy final of 2006. Recently he was selected to stand in the final of 2010 ICC T20 World Cup final, which was won by England who played Australia in the final.
Like most other umpires, Aleem Dar also had his share of controversies. A few of his decisions were eccentric making headlines the world over. Dar with his partner Steve Bucknor even faced death threats during a test match played between http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757 and England in Centurion, South Africa. He was also part of the controversy that surrounded five umpires. Steve Bucknor, Crowe, Bowden and Koertzen along with Aleem Dar were not aware of playing conditions under the famous Duckworth-Lewis method, which caused Australian bowlers to bowl three extra over’s under bad light. Dar was heavily criticized for his decisions that he gave in a test match played between Australia and England at Trent Bridge in 2005.
Dar’s passion for playing cricket continued even after taking umpiring as a profession. To date, Aleem Dar has officiated a total of 60 test matches, 132 ODI’s and seven T20’s. He made his test debut in 2003, in a match played between http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Bangladesh-c747 and England at Dhaka. His debut as a T20’s umpire was in 2009, when he officiated a match between Australia and Pakistan at Dubai. Aleem Dar has also officiated 35 matches as TV umpire in all formats of the game. Aleem Dar may not have attained much as a cricketer but has made his mark as a quality umpire in the cricketing world. Throughout his career he has remained a wonderful ambassador for his country and cricket.
Tags: