THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Women are breaking the glass ceiling in cricket umpiring which has otherwise seen mostly men taking it up as a career. Now, Kerala has a total of six women umpires. Recently, two of them -- T P Soniamol and Farha Shirin -- officiated as fourth umpires in the inaugural Kerala Cricket League that concluded at the Greenfield Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.
While a fourth umpire -- aka reserve umpire -- basically acts as a standby to the two on-field umpires and the third umpire, the official’s role includes keeping track of player substitutions and their time spent on and off the field, bringing on a new ball, observing the pitch during breaks to ensure there is no interference, checking the batteries in the light meter, and carrying drinks to the on-field umpires. Though they play a supporting role, their contributions do ensure that a game of cricket takes place smoothly.
While Soniamol, 36, and Farha, 29, are not bothered about their complexion getting affected by spending long hours under the sun while officiating cricket, they realised the significance of the role of a fourth umpire during the KCL matches.
A Kozhikode native, Farha had represented Kerala from 2009 to 2020 as an opening batter. She now works as a guest faculty with the Malabar Christian College, besides taking up umpiring assignments. She says her life resembles that of the character Pathu in the 2023 Malayalam film ‘Sesham Mike-il Fathima’ which saw Kalyani Priyadarshan donning the role of a football commentator braving opposition from her conservative family. “I can relate to the character as even now my mother, Suharabi, cannot digest the fact that I was once a cricket player and now an umpire,” Farha tells TNIE.
“I usually cover my head with a scarf. But when I play and officiate cricket, I don’t adorn the scarf, which has caused friction among my family members and relatives.”
She says officiating in the KCL was a huge opportunity.
“I consider those matches on a par with IPL matches. Fourth umpires are not commonly seen in cricket tournaments. Our responsibility includes sending the players to the ground on time and to ensure that they maintain decorum,” says Farah, who is registered with the Malappuram District Cricket Association.
Soniamol, from Tripunithura, has been serving as a physical education teacher at the Cochin Refinery School, Ambalamukal. She too represented Kerala, for five years, until 2012.
“I knew the rules of cricket umpiring. But only during the KCL did I realise the specific rules that go along with the fourth umpire. More and more girls should come to the game of cricket as there are umpteen opportunities. They have to stay in the game and have to keep updating themselves if they wish to become an umpire,” Soniamol says.
The other women umpires in Kerala are Hannah Abraham, P Saritha, Chaithanya and Binisha. Kerala Cricket Association secretary Vinod S Kumar says the state body has been promoting women’s cricket. A pink cricket championship is on the anvil, which will give more opportunities to women umpires, he adds.