Vrinda Rathi: India’s Woman Test Umpire

Creating History In Women’s Cricket

The first home test for the Indian women’s cricket team in nine years has proven to be particularly memorable for Vrinda Rathi, who is officiating in the match. Rathi made history on the first day of the India vs England test match at the DY Patil Stadium when she became the country’s first woman Test umpire! Rathi may have found the event even more memorable because it took place in Navi Mumbai, the city where she was born and made her umpiring debut.

Rathi passed the umpires’ exam administered by the Mumbai Cricket Association in 2014 and four years later cleared the umpires’ exam held by the Board of Control for Cricket in India in 2018.

Setting Umpiring Records In A Row

34-year-old Rathi has officiated in 43 women’s T20 matches and 13 women’s ODI matches and was promoted to the ICC Development Panel of Umpires in 2020. Umpiring records have been set this year in a row as Rathi and Janani Narayanan made history in 2023 by becoming the first women umpires to officiate a men’s domestic competition in India. They officiated the match between Goa and Pondicherry in the 2022–2023 Ranji Trophy season.

During her college years, Vrinda played as a medium pacer for four years, representing Mumbai University. However, in this match, KN Anantapadmanabhan (India) served as the second field umpire in addition to Vrinda. GS Lakshmi is officiating the match, while Virendra Sharma serves as the third umpire.

Additionally, she served as an umpire for the Women’s T20 World Cup, which was held in South Africa in 2023. Rathi was also appointed umpire for the inaugural Women’s Premier League final. She recently participated in the field at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China as well.

With women umpires currently officiating in men’s cricket in Australia and England, the BCCI still has a long way to go. Only three of the 150 umpires who are registered with the BCCI are women.

Image source: Indian Express, NDTV, ETVBharat