Aleem Dar who is a member of Elite Panel of ICC Umpires, on Sunday surpassed retired South African umpire Rudi Koertzen for officiating in the most ODIs as an on-field umpire.
The 52-year-old from Pakistan achieved the feat when he officiated for the 210th ODI in the second match between Pakistan and Zimbabwe on Sunday.
Aleem Dar: Great Honour To Be On Top In Both Tests And ODIs For Umpires
Aleem Dar was awarded a special memento to mark the occasion of his record-breaking 210th ODI appearance as an umpire, before the start of the play in the second ODI at Pakistan’s Rawalpindi which will host all 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is between the hosts and Zimbabwe.
Aleem Dar, who played first-class cricket in Pakistan for over a decade as an all-rounder before taking up umpiring, had also made his ODI debut as an umpire in Pakistan, when he stood in an ODI match against Sri Lanka in his hometown of Gujranwala in Pakistan in 16th February 2000.
He won the David Shepherd Trophy for good umpiring three years in a row from 2009 to 2011, after being nominated twice in 2005 and 2006 but beaten by Simon Taufel, who won on both occasions. Aleem Dar, Marais Erasmus, Richard Kettleborough, Kumar Dharmasena and Simon Taufel were the only umpires to have received the award from its inception until 2017.
He played first-class cricket as a right-handed batsman and a leg-break bowler for Allied Bank, Gujranwala, Lahore and Pakistan Railways before becoming an umpire. He played 17 first-class and 18 List A games.
“It is a matter of great honour for me to be on the top of the list of both Tests and ODIs for umpires,” Aleem Dar said in an ICC release.
“When I had started out in the profession, I had never imagined I would get this far. I can only say that I have enjoyed every moment on the field and learning has been an ongoing process all this while,” he added.
Aleem Dar has umpired in 132 Tests from 2003, 210 ODIs from 2000 and 46 T20Is from 2009.
Aleem Dar Surpassed Steve Bucknor To Top Test Umpires List
In 2019, Aleem Dar passed his idol West Indian Steve Bucknor to the top of the Test umpires list. He holds the record of officiating in 132 Test matches and is second in the list of T20Is, only behind compatriot Ahsan Raza, with umpiring in 46 T20Is. Aleem Dar has officiated in most 387 international matches so far, the most by any umpire.
“I thank my family for standing by me over the years and am grateful to the International Cricket Council and the Pakistan Cricket Board for backing me and providing me with all the opportunities. I am also thankful to all my colleagues match officials for their help and support,” said Aleem Dar.
Pakistan defeated Zimbabwe in the first ODI by 26 runs and in the second by six wickets. In the first ODI, Pakistan scored 281/8 and Zimbabwe fought but managed 255 with Brendon Taylor scoring 112 and Pakistan pacer Shaheen Afridi picking five wickets.
In the next match, Zimbabwe managed only 206 with Iftikhar Ahmed bagging five wickets conceding 40 runs and Pakistan managed to reach the target with about 15 overs remaining.