Kim Cotton of New Zealand made history after becoming the first on-field female umpire to officiate in a men's international match between two test-playing nations. She achieved this feat during the recently concluded 2nd T20I between New Zealand and Sri Lanka at the University Oval, Dunedin. Cotton shared the on-field duties with compatriot Wayne Knights. NZ vs SL 2023: New Zealand Beat Sri Lanka By 9 wickets in 2nd T20, Level Series 1-1.

Australia's Claira Polosak earlier became the first female on-field umpire in a men's ODI match when she officiated in a World Cricket League Division 2 match between Oman and Namibia in 2019. Polosak also became the first female match official after serving as a fourth umpire during the Sydney Test of Border Gavaskar Trophy 2021.

Meanwhile, this was not the first time that Cotton had officiated in a men's game. Earlier she served as a third umpire during a match between India and New Zealand in 2020. Cotton has also officiated in three Women's T20 World Cups and one Women's ODI World Cup.

She came into the highlight by becoming the first female umpire to officiate in a World Cup final during the 2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup final between Australia and India. Overall she has officiated in 24 women's ODIs and 54 women's T20Is since 2018.

New Zealand registered a big nine-wicket victory against Sri Lanka in this historic T20I match. Earlier batting first, Sri Lanka were bowled out for a total of 141. Dhananjaya de Silva 37(26) was the top scorer for the Sri Lanka team. Meanwhile, Adam Milne picked up a five-wicket haul for the Blackcaps. ‘Great Gesture’ Hardik Pandya Joins Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad for Ramadan Sehri Following Gujarat Titans’ Win Over Delhi Capitals in IPL 2023 (See Pic).

In reply, New Zealand easily chased down this total within 14.4 overs. Opener Tim Seifert 79*(43) scored a half-century and took his team home. With this win, New Zealand have now managed to level the three-match series 1-1. The third and final T20I of this series will take place at John Davies Oval, Queenstown on Saturday, April 8.

 

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 05, 2023 01:55 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).