This story is from July 28, 2016

Corporate matches bring in big bucks for Gurgaon umpires

Part-time umpiring brings in easy money for cricketers and coaches, who say that thanks to the IPL, corporate and private matches are aplenty in NCR now.
Corporate matches bring in big bucks for Gurgaon umpires
Indian umpires Anil Chaudhary, CK Nandan and C Shamshuddin each went home richer by approximately Rs 40 lakh for officiating in the ninth edition of the Indian Premier League. Delhi’s Chaudhary earned Rs 39.63 lakh, Nandan and Shamshuddin, who are also in ICC’s Emirates Panel, got Rs 40.83 lakh each. Being an umpire is comparatively a non-glamourous role in the glitzy world of cricket, and now, news of umpires making good money must be encouraging for budding umpires.
While being an ICC or BCCI’s elite-level umpire is another league entirely, the umpires in the lower-rung are officiating in plenty of private matches. For most, it’s not their primary job, though.
IPL brought in the trend of corporate and private matches
Syed Aamir, who lives in Jamia Nagar and used to play for the UP team, gave up on the dream of being a cricketer and became a banker. But he still moonlights as an umpire and has been officiating in many matches for the last six years. “You have so many teams across NCR, be it for corporate companies or academies, that every weekend, all the grounds are booked. They also need umpires and scorers. We get paid around Rs 800 per match by the state cricket associations. It is double of what we used to get four-five years back. Also, the frequency of the matches has increased considerably,” says Aamir, who has officiated in league matches conducted by Delhi & District Cricket Association (DDCA).
Ashwani Kumar, who was earlier affiliated with the Haryana Cricket Association (HCA), and is now with the DDCA, has been umpiring for 22 years now. He is from Rohtak, but he spends most of his time travelling across states in north India for matches. “We are invited by people who organize corporate T20 matches and tournaments. If two big corporate teams are playing, then you can easily be paid Rs 2,000 per match. In the summer months, there are three matches on the trot while in winters, it’s only two,” he says, adding, “I used to come to Gurgaon and Faridabad to officiate in games for the HCA. Now, I usually come to Delhi and Noida to officiate in private matches.”
Sambhu Nath is a cricket coach at a school here. He has umpired for both private matches and for the Allahabad Cricket Association, (which in turn is affiliated to the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association). He says, “You only get paid large sums of money at the higher levels. At the junior level, different cricket associations pay varying amounts, and whatever they pay, is not much. That’s why you see so many umpires officiating at private matches.” He adds, “IPL changed the game for umpires. It gave lower rung umpires a chance to earn big bucks. IPL, along with the sudden fitness craze, has made corporate matches common on weekends. Ideally, there should be some sort of placement programme for umpires so corporate houses can hire them.”

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It’s easy money for players and coaches who moonlight as umpires
While some umpires are affiliated with some state cricket association or the other, which requires qualifying a preliminary exam, most umpires officiating at corporate matches are simply players who are slightly more aware of the rules than others. Manoj Thawal and Pawan Kumar, both residents of Gurgaon, officiate at matches organized by local cricket academies when they are not playing themselves. “It’s all thanks to the IPL that more matches are being conducted these days, and because of that, more playing grounds have come up. Gurgaon has about 100-odd teams that play regularly, and about 30-odd decent grounds, which are all booked on the weekends. Everybody doesn’t have the budget to hire a DDCA or HCA affiliated umpire, and so guys like us officiate,” says Manoj. Pawan, his friend, adds, “We know the rules better than others, and an umpire is also respected by players. We’re paid anything between Rs 350-700 per match.”
Zaheer Abbas, a resident of Jamia Nagar who works with an event management company and also acts as an umpire, says, “These matches take place on weekends when I am usually free. If you are getting Rs 1,000-1,500 at the end of the day, you can spend that money on anything – from watching a movie or on dinner.” Yavish Khoba, a 26-year-old who is a coach at a Gurgaon-based cricket academy, has another reason for why the demand for umpires has gone up. He says, “Most teams want a neutral umpire, and so they like to hire one who is not related to any team. You’ll find umpires travelling to neighbouring cities to officiate a match.”
Gaurav Nayal, a Faridabad boy who recently graduated from a Noida university, says, “I learnt umpiring from my seniors. Also, since I studied physical education, I am aware of the rules better. However, becoming a full-time umpire is not on my mind. A game has 11 players and two umpires. The players get all the money and glory. If anyone is trying to pursue a career in cricket, they should try being a player rather than an umpire.”
No ones’ dreaming of becoming the next David Shepherd or Billy Bowden
Aamir says that umpiring at corporate matches is usually done by youngsters who play on the weekends and moonlight as umpires, just for the money. Ashwani adds to this, saying, “Nobody wants to be a full-time umpire. Those who umpire at corporate matches are not dreaming of becoming the next David Shepherd or Billy Bowden. Yeh sab shauk aur paise ke liye kar rahe hain.”
When asked why, Nath says, “How many Indian umpires officiate at international matches? Maybe one per match? And those who officiate at Ranji matches are also few, so the majority of umpires officiate at league matches where the pay is not that great. It’s not easy being on your toes throughout the match. If you make one bad decision, you will be cursed by everyone. Also, when big cricketers play, their appeal can intimidate the relatively junior umpire. So it requires dealing with a lot of pressure and with very few rewards.”
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