Claire Polosak all set to become first female to officiate men's Test during Australia-India Sydney Test

The third Test between India and Australia is already going to be an interesting affair as the series is levelled at 1-1 currently. Adding to it, there will be another new element in the game where Australia’s Claire Polosak would become the first female match official to do the role in men’s Test match. Polosak would be seen in the capacity of the fourth umpire during the Australia vs India 3rd Test in Sydney.

The 32-year-old Polosak already has the credit of becoming the first female match official in men’s ODI. She plied her role in a match in ICC’s Division 2 league, which was played between Namibia and Oman at Windhoek in 2019. The on-field umpires in the 3rd Test between cricketing giants will be Paul Reiffel, and Paul Wilson, and the TV umpire would be Bruce Oxenford. The match referee charge would be shouldered by David Boon of Australia.

Claire Polosak- first female to officiate men’s List A game

According to the rules of ICC, the fourth umpire role is given by the home cricket board among their nominees from the international panel. The panel consists of ICC umpires from the host nation. Polosak is a resident of New South Wales’ Goulburn city and also has the distinction of being the first female match official in men’s List A game in her country.

Moving on to the roles of the fourth umpire, the person is supposed to bring the new ball on the field and often fetches drinks for on-field umpires. The person also takes care of checking the batteries in the light meter, checking if the pitch is perfect during the intervals or there is any hindrance, and also brings new bails on the field. As and when required, the fourth umpire also takes over the change of the third umpire is there’ some issue with any of the on-field umpires. In that case, the third umpire moves on the field.

Talking about the 3rd Test, it will be interesting to see if India can maintain their winning streak in the Sydney game commencing on January 7.