All-woman umpiring cast for domestic game

NEW DELHI: On Wednesday, when the under-23 boys from Manipur and Mizoram take the field in the CK Nayudu Trophy at Kalyani in West Bengal, they will be witness to a special slice of history - two women umpires will be officiating in a domestic boys match.
The Indian cricket board (BCCI) has allotted officiating duties for the game to Mumbai's Vrinda Rathi and Chennai's N Janani.Incidentally, Vrinda and Janani are the only two women to have cleared BCCI's Level II examinations this year, making them eligible to stand for women's cricket matches and junior boys matches across India. Vrinda has also been involved in fitness training and cricket scoring for a few years.
The BCCI has also roped in 13 women match referees who will be assigned junior cricket and women's cricket matches this season.
"They are here on merit. They have cleared strict and stringent exams with flying colours and that's why we have decided to give them this assignment. BCCI wants to give opportunities and tell women there is a career opportunity in officiating cricket matches. That will draw more women to these jobs," BCCI GM (cricket ops) Saba Karim told TOI.
New grading system for umpires and referees
While there is excitement surrounding Vrinda and Janani's induction, they will have to wait for a while to officiate in first-class and senior women's games. This is because the BCCI has also introduced a new grading system for evaluating umpires from this season. Umpires will be divided into four grades - A, B, C and D - based on their performances.
"There is a thorough evaluation system in place from this year. A team will review the performances of all the umpires on the domestic circuit and grade them. For example, these two ladies (Vrinda and Janani) among a few others will start from Grade D. Based on their efficiency, umpires will graduate to the highest level," Karim explained.
Karim said match referees will also be graded from next year once they decide on an evaluation system.