KOCHI:While Kerala cricketers are striving to make a mark at the national level, a match official has gone a step further. And how! V Narayanan Kutty is one of just two persons nominated by the Board of Control for Cricket in India from among 58 officials to the International Panel of ICC Match Referees.
A dashing opener in his time, Kutty is all set to begin a new innings as the first Malayalee to feature on the elite ICC list of match officials.“I feel proud to be included in the international panel and also to be the first to achieve the honour from Kerala,” Kutty told Express after the BCCI announcement on Wednesday.
“To be one among two nominees from a BCCI panel of 58 match referees, I believe, is an ode to my work over the years.”
Kutty, whose playing career spanned 42 Ranji Trophy matches, has officiated in more than 150 domestic cricket fixtures, including Duleep Trophy and Ranji Trophy finals as well as the IPL, as a match referee in the BCCI panel since 2006.
Narayanan Kutty grew a reputation as an explosive opener
V Narayanan Kutty, the right-hander from Kozhikode, was a permanent fixture in the state team between 1985 and 1997 and grew a reputation as an explosive opener. He scored 1,793 runs for Kerala, including three centuries and four half tons, with a brilliant 125 against Hyderabad in an away match during the 1992-93 season being the highlight.
He took up refereeing in 2000 and was included in the BCCI panel of match referees when it was first set up in 2006. He will undergo an induction programme and is expected to serve as a shadow referee during the Windies’ tour of India in October and November.
“As an international referee, my assignments will include ‘A’ team matches of Test playing nations, international matches of non-Test playing nations and women’s international matches,” said Kutty who works at the Income Tax Office in Thiruvananthapuram.
“It’s an honour for Kerala cricket that a former player has been named in the international panel. It is a stamp of approval for the progress Kerala has made in cricket,” said Kerala Cricket Association secretary Sreejith Nair.