Umpire Rod Tucker reaches half-century of Test matches

Tucker, who became the 13th umpire to reach a half-century of Tests, was presented with a commemorative medal by Cricket South Africa (CSA) President Chris Nenzani on behalf of the ICC while CSA Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat presented him with a special frame.

Tucker, a left-handed batsman who aggregated 5076 runs in 103 first-class matches in Australia between 1986 and 1999 and bagged 123 wickets with his medium-pace bowling, started officiating in international matches in 2009.

Rod Tucker: “Cricket has been a life-long passion since my days as a player, so to be standing in my 50th Test match as an umpire is a great achievement in my career.  I would like to thank the Cricket Umpires and Scorers Association New South Wales and Cricket Australia for helping me on the pathway to the ICC Elite Panel.

“Umpiring at this level can be challenging and I would like to thank my work colleagues and family for their support and encouragement. I sincerely thank the ICC and the Member Boards for this opportunity and their continued support over the last seven years.”
Adrian Griffith, ICC’s Senior Manager – Umpires and Referees: “Tucker is a very good umpire with a fine temperament. He has done consistently well at the international level and this along with his dedication has afforded him the opportunity to reach this milestone.

“I congratulate him on behalf of everyone at the ICC and wish him all the best for the future. He has served cricket well and we hope he continues to excel in the coming years.”

Rod Tucker’s international umpiring career at a glance:

· First match -T20I between Australia and South Africa in Melbourne on 11 January 2009

· Test debut – New Zealand vs Bangladesh in Hamilton, 15-19 February, 2010

· Has officiated in 64 ODIs and 35 T20Is including matches of the 2011 and 2015 ICC Cricket World Cups and the 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2016 ICC World Twenty20s

· Stood in the ICC 2016 World T20 final in Kolkata between West Indies and England

· Stood in the ICC Champions Trophy final in Birmingham between England and India

Other umpires who have officiated in 50 or more Tests:
Steve Bucknor – 128 Tests (1989-2009)
Aleem Dar – 109 Tests (2003-to date)
Rudi Koertzen – 108 Tests (1992-2010)
Daryl Harper 95 Tests (1998-2011)
David Shepherd 92 Tests (1985-2005)
Billy Bowden 84 Tests (2000-2015)
Darrell Hair 78 Tests (1992-2008)
Simon Taufel 74 Tests (1996-2012)
Srinivas Venkatraghavan 73 Tests (1993-2004)
Dickie Bird 66 Tests (1973-1996)
Ian Gould 58 Tests (2008-to date)
Steve Davis 57 Tests (1997-2015)