Sri lanka’s Kumar Dharmasena was on Friday selected to officiate the final of the cricket World Cup on Sunday, thereby becoming the first person to feature in the quadrennial tournament final as both an umpire and player.
“Kumar Dharmasena and Richard Kettleborough will be the two on-field umpires,” the ICC said in a statement.
English umpire Richard Kettleborough, rated as the world’s best umpire for the past two years, was unsurprisingly chosen to be in the centre at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
Four-time Cup champions Australia will take on maiden finalists New Zealand in the summit clash.
Dharmasena’s inclusion came as a surprise as he was involved in the controversial decision with England’s James Taylor’s run out in the first game against Australia for which ICC later conceded that a mistake was made. No umpires were penalised for that error.
The elevation of Dharmasena, 43, comes 19 years after he played in Sri lanka’s 1996 triumph against Australia.
South African Marais Erasmus has been appointed video umpire, with Englishman Ian Gould to serve as fourth umpire. Sri lankan Ranjan Madugalle, will be the match referee.