Major League Cricket: Simon Taufel says he's happy to assist in the development of umpiring in the United States

Major League Cricket (MLC) announced on Thursday a high-quality panel of eleven match officials for America's first-ever professional franchise cricket league which is set to launch on July 13, 2023.

Nine umpires and two match referees will form an experienced group of officials for the 19 matches set to take place at two cricket-specific venues in North Texas (Grand Prairie Stadium, Grand Prairie, TX) and North Carolina (Church Street Park, Morrisville, NC) leading up to the championship match on Sunday, July 30.

The group includes three umpires who currently serve on the ICC International Panel of Umpires - Wayne Knights, Paul Wilson and Ruchira Palliyaguru.

Four US-based umpires -Jermaine Lindo, Rushane Samuels, Vijaya Prakash Mallela and Billy Taylor - comprise the remainder of the group, with Lindo and Mallela both currently serving on the International Panel of ICC Development Umpires.

Taylor, who has recently relocated to the United States from his native England, has served on the English Cricket Board's Full Umpires List.

Leading the match's official team is Simon Taufel, five-time ICC Umpire of the Year, who will serve as a Match Referee along with Reon King, who currently serves on the International Panel of ICC Match Referees. Completing the crew, Owen Brown and Colin Edwards will perform fourth umpire duties throughout the tournament.

"The umpire crew forms a critical component of the game and we are delighted to welcome an experienced group that includes some of the best officials in the world," said Justin Geale, Tournament Director, Major League Cricket.

"Our league will provide a platform for domestic umpires to officiate in high-level competition watched by a global audience. We're really pleased that two umpires who have performed with distinction in Minor League Cricket over the past two seasons will also be part of the Playing Control Team performing fourth umpire duties."

The first-ever MLC match will start at 7:30 p.m. CST on Thursday, July 13, under the lights at America's new premier cricket venue, the 7,200-capacity Grand Prairie Stadium, near Dallas, Texas. Fans can purchase the limited seats remaining at tickets.majorleaguecricket.com.