Match officials announced for ICC U19 Men's World Cup 2026

Published - 13 Jan 2026, 17:19 IST | Updated - 13 Jan 2026, 17:30 IST

Russell Warren and Zahid Bassarath will be the on-field umpires for the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2026 opening-day clash between USA and India, with group stage appointments now finalised.

Lubabalo Gcuma will be the TV Umpire for the Group B opener, with Ahmad Shah Durrani as Fourth Umpire and Dean Cosker in place as the match referee.

The opening day has three matches taking place in all, with Masudur Mukul and Aidan Seaver overseeing Zimbabwe versus Scotland, and Iknow Chabi and Cory Black taking charge of Tanzania’s historic clash against West Indies as the African nation make their first appearance at an ICC global event.

Chabi is one of two Zimbabweans on this Emirates ICC International Panel of Umpires, joined by Forster Mutizwa, who will be in the middle for the first time when Australia take on Ireland on Saturday.

Graham Lloyd, who is following in the footsteps of his father David as an international umpire, is part of the on-field team for Japan’s first match of the competition against Sri Lanka, alongside Nitin Bathi.

In all, there are 17 umpires in place for the competition along with four match referees, Cosker being joined by Graeme La Brooy, Neeyamur Rahul and Prakash Bhatt.

Appointments for the Super Six and knockout stages will follow at a later date.