Sports Reporter
ZIMBABWE umpire Langton Rusere flew the country’s flag high when he was selected to officiate in the final of the ICC Men’s Under-19 World Cup between Australia and India in Benoni, South Africa, yesterday.
He was joined by Allahudien Paleker of South Africa in a match the Aussies cruised to a 79-run victory for their fourth title.
It was Rusere’s first appearance in the U-19 World Cup final, and he had previously umpired in seven matches at this year’s tournament.
It was his fourth game involving India and second successive match for Australia after their nail-biting semi-final win over Pakistan on Thursday.
Rusere (38) made his debut as an international umpire in July 2015 and grew in stature as an official umpire.
In 2021 he became the first Black African to stand in a Test match as one of the on-field umpires for the first Test between Zimbabwe and Pakistan at Harare Sports Club.
In 2016, he was one of the on-field officials at the Under-19 World Cup in Bangladesh and went on to officiate at the ICC Women’s World Cup 2017 staged in England.
In November 2018, he umpired the Women’s World T20 final between Australia and England, in Antigua, having also stood in the semi-final between Australia and West Indies at the same venue.
It was a historic appearance as Rusere became the first Zimbabwean umpire to stand in the final of a major global cricket tournament.
In February 2020, Rusere was appointed as an overseas umpire for the three-match ODI series between New Zealand and India.