ICC congratulates Ranjan Madugalle on becoming 1st match referee to officiate 200 Tests
ICC posted a congratulatory tweet as Ranjan Madugalle became the first match referee to officiate 200 Test matches during the ongoing Test between Sri Lanka and West Indies. Madugalle has officiated 200 Tests, 369 ODIs, and 125 T20Is and has supervised 14 women's ODIs and eight women's T20Is.
Chief Referee of the ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees Ranjan Madugalle reached a historic landmark as he became the first match referee to officiate 200 Test matches. He achieved the milestone during the ongoing test between Sri Lanka and West Indies on Sunday. To mark the achievement, he was presented with mementos on behalf of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and the ICC by SLC Vice President Dr. Jayantha Dharmadasa and SLC CEO Ashley de Silva, respectively.
"Ranjan has been a tremendous asset over the years and a significant source of inspiration for others. We have benefitted from his experience and work ethic, as someone you can turn to for guidance," Adrian Griffith, ICC Senior Manager - Umpires and Referees said in an ICC release.
"On behalf of the ICC, I would like to thank Ranjan for his years of service to the game and congratulate him on a wonderful career. We hope to continue benefiting from his expertise in the years to come," he added.
It's business as usual for Ranjan Madugalle š¼
ā ICC (@ICC) November 21, 2021
He brings up 200 Test matches as Match Referee š pic.twitter.com/eWaex9iHsc
Madugalle played 21 Test matches for Sri Lanka and scored 1029 runs in his international career. He was appointed as match referee in 1993 and officiated a Test between Pakistan and New Zealand as the first fixture of his stint.Ā
Madugalle has been regularly officiating in the major matches of the ICC events. He has been the ICC Match Referee for four ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Finals (1999, 2003, 2015 and 2019), three ICC Champions Trophy Finals (2004, 2006 and 2013) and four ICC Men's T20 World Cup Finals (2007, 2010, 2016 and 2021). Madugalle said that he has enjoyed every bit of his journey.
"It is an honour and a privilege to be officiating in my 200th Test match, for it is not a milestone I had never imagined I would reach. Whilst it has taken a long time, it seems just the other day that I had taken on this role, because I have enjoyed every bit of the journey," said Madugalle.
"This is obviously what dreams are made of and I continue to be passionately involved with the game and in my role while liaising with my colleagues from the world over.
"The passion obviously comes from my time as a player and it is my good fortune to have remained connected so closely with the game," he added.