Asad Rauf ( Punjabi, ur, ; 12 May 1956 – 14 September 2022) was a Pakistani

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

player and

umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...

. He was a member of the

ICC Elite Umpire Panel The Elite Panel of ICC Umpires is a panel of cricket umpires appointed by the International Cricket Council to officiate in Test matches and One Day Internationals around the world. The panel was first established in April 2002 when the ICC deci ...

from 2006 to 2013. Alleged to have been involved in match-fixing and spot-fixing of cricket matches, he was found guilty of corruption by the

Board of Control for Cricket in India The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is the national governing body for cricket in India. Its headquarters are situated at Cricket centre, Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The BCCI is the richest governing body of cricket in the world ...

in February 2016 and banned for five years.

Early life and playing career

Rauf was born in

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

, on 12 May 1956. He played in Pakistani domestic cricket between 1977 and 1991, representing Pakistan Universities,

National Bank of Pakistan National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) () is a Pakistani government-owned multinational commercial bank which is a subsidiary of State Bank of Pakistan. It is headquartered in Karachi, Pakistan. As of September 2020, it has 1,511 branches across Pakist ...

and

Pakistan Railways Pakistan Railways ( ur, ) is the national, state-owned railway company of Pakistan. Founded in 1861 and headquartered in Lahore, it owns of track across Pakistan, stretching from Torkham to Karachi, offering both freight and passenger servi ...

Umpiring career

Rauf became a first-class umpire in 1998. In February 2000, the Pakistan Cricket Board appointed him to his first

One Day International A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, currently 50, with the game lasting up to 9 hours. The Cricket World C ...

(ODI), the match between

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

and

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

Gujranwala Gujranwala ( ur, , label=none; ) is a city and capital of Gujranwala Division located in Pakistan. It is also known as "City of Wrestlers" and is quite famous for its food. It is the 5th most populous city proper after Karachi, Lahore, Faisala ...

, Pakistan, on 16 February that year. With the promotion of

Aleem Dar Aleem Dar PP ( Punjabi, ur, ; born 6 June 1968) is a Pakistani cricket umpire and former cricketer. He is a member of the Elite Panel of ICC Umpires. He won the David Shepherd Trophy three years in a row from 2009 to 2011, after being nomina ...

to the

three years later, Rauf was included in the International Panel of Umpires for the first time. In January 2005, the ICC appointed him to his first

test match Test match in some sports refers to a sporting contest between national representative teams and may refer to: * Test cricket * Test match (indoor cricket) * Test match (rugby union) * Test match (rugby league) * Test match (association football) ...

, the fixture between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe at Chittagong (MAA). He then stood in the Boxing Day Test at the

Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), also known locally as "The 'G", is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, Victoria. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadiu ...

between Australia and South Africa later that year in December. He was subsequently promoted to the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires in April of the following year. In September 2012, Rauf umpired the ICC World Twenty20 group stage match between India and Afghanistan. From the time of his inclusion in the

Elite Panel of ICC Umpires The Elite Panel of ICC Umpires is a panel of cricket umpires appointed by the International Cricket Council to officiate in Test matches and One Day Internationals around the world. The panel was first established in April 2002 when the ICC deci ...

in 2006, Rauf umpired in 64 Tests, 139 one-day internationals and 28 Twenty20 internationals. He was ultimately dropped from the ICC Elite Panel of Umpires after an annual review of their performance in June 2013. The council maintained that this was unrelated to his connection with the police investigation into spot-fixing. He consequently resigned as an umpire altogether.

2013 IPL spot-fixing

Rauf's name cropped up during the 2013 IPL spot fixing controversy, prompting the ICC to remove him from the panel of match officials for the 2013 Champions Trophy. He was charged in September 2013 by

Mumbai Police The Mumbai Police (Marathi: मुंबई पोलीस, IAST: ''Mumbaī Pulīs'', formerly ''Bombay Police'') is the police department of the city of Mumbai, Maharashtra. It is a part of Maharashtra Police and has the primary responsibiliti ...

with illegal betting, cheating and fraud. He denied the allegations but refused to go to Mumbai to face the charges. In February 2016, Rauf was found guilty and was banned for five years.

Personal life

Upon his retirement from umpiring in cricket in 2016, Rauf operated a shoe shop in

. Rauf died on 14 September 2022 in Lahore. He was 66, and suffered

cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. It is a medical emergency that, without immediate medical intervention, will result in sudden cardiac death within minutes. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and possib ...

prior to his death.

References

External links