Umpires call for total respect in local cricket

Carlton Best
Carlton Best

Local cricket umpires Carlton Best and Afraz Mohammed said all individuals involved in cricket must show each other respect for the good of the game.

Best and Mohammed were two of the standout umpires in the recently held Regional 2017 Practical and Oral Examinations. Best placed third and Mohammed finished fifth among the 35 candidates.

Best was proud of his accomplishment and thanked God and his supporters. “It is a great achievement by the Almighty God,” Best said. “I worked very hard and studied with the help of my teacher Mr James Singh. Hard work pays off and I want to thank God for that.”

Discussing respect in the game of cricket, Best said everyone involved in the game must respect each other. He said, “Not all the time you get respect, but you want to give respect and do a honest game to the best of your ability. Not everything will go your way at times but you try your best. You must try to maintain the respect with you respecting the players and the players respecting you.”

Best, who wants to become an International Cricket Council umpire, said he enjoys sports because it allows everyone to unite. “I want to help the young ones coming up. Cricket and sports on the whole is something that bring communities and the world together, and I would like to give back to the community after my training.”

Mohammed also thanked those who helped him succeed in the exams. “First of all, it was plenty preparation, plenty studies and I did a lot of reading. I had a lot of help from my coach Mr Peter Nero and the trainer Mr Anthony Sanowah at the Central Zone.”

Mohammed said no one individual is bigger than the game of cricket and respect must be demonstrated by all for the good of the game. “We as umpires need to respect each other. The game is bigger than umpires, cricketers, managers, the game itself, the spirit of cricket is bigger than all that. We are just part of that,” Mohammed said.

Mohammed said an umpire’s approach could help everyone maintain a level of respect for one another. “When we as officials show that respect to players in turn we will get it.

When I started, it was very difficult in the beginning because these players are looking to pounce on you. It is how you approach them, how you talk with them, how you laugh with them, you want to break that ice.”

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"Umpires call for total respect in local cricket"

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