Dharmasena first to play and umpire in World Cup final

Sri Lanka’s Kumar Dharmasena was on Friday selected to officiate the final of the cricket World Cup on Sunday, thereby becoming the first person to feature in the quadrennial tournament final as both an umpire and player.

English umpire Richard Kettleborough, rated as the world’s best umpire for the past two years, was unsurprisingly chosen to be in the centre at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), reports the Sydney Morning Herald.

Four-time Cup champions Australia will take on maiden finalists New Zealand in the summit clash.

That he will be joined by Dharmasena, who won the International Cricket Council (ICC) umpires’ award in 2011, was a surprise - not because of the Sri Lankan’s general standard of officiating but because of his role that saw England’s James Taylor stranded two runs short of a maiden century for England.

After the leg-before dismissal of Taylor, made by presiding umpire Aleem Dar was overruled by the video umpire, Dharmasena independently called for a review of an incident that happened a few seconds later. England attempted to run a leg-bye and Jimmy Anderson was run-out at the striker’s end by a direct hit from Glenn Maxwell.