Sue Redfern and Jack Shantry elevated to ECB's elite umpire list

Redfern is one of five appointments to the 34-person group of officials, which has been created following a review of umpiring in English domestic cricket

Sue Redfern is to become the first woman to stand as an umpire in a first-class match in England and Wales after being added to the ECB's new Professional Umpires' Team.

Redfern is one of five appointments to the 34-person group of officials, which has been created following a review of umpiring in English domestic cricket and will receive additional financial and performance support. 

The 44-year-old is currently at the Women's World Cup in New Zealand. She steps up from the National Panel of umpires.

Redfern is joined on the PUT by former Worcestershire seamer Jack Shantry, who has worked his way up the recreational ladder since retiring from playing in 2018.

Former Pakistan international Naeem Ashraf, Anthony Harris and Surendiran Shanmugam also jump onto the elite list.

^{Jack Shantry has joined the elite list of ECB umpires (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)}

The PUT umpires are available to stand in all senior men's and women's domestic competitions - both first-class and List A, as well as The Hundred. The five new appointments are expected to begin life in the PUT in 2nd XI cricket.

"The appointment of these five umpires is richly deserved for their consistently high performances over recent times," ECB managing director of county cricket Neil Snowball said.

"The ECB has a long history of developing some of the best match officials in the world and we are at a point, after the independent review into Officiating last year, where we have opportunity to drive change to be better.

"We are making good progress on that journey and these appointments are important steps as we establish a clearer and fairer pathway for anyone who wants to be an umpire."

Redfern will balance officiating in men's and women's domestic cricket with her international duties in the women's game.

She said: “The most significant aspect of this opportunity for me is that, for the first time, I can focus all my energy on umpiring as a career. This is my first full-time contract as an umpire.

^{Sue Redfern is to become the first woman to stand in a first-class game in England and Wales (Stu Forster/Getty Images)}

"That means a lot to me as it allows me to challenge myself to take the next step in my career.

"I will have more time to train, to work with the ECB to analyse my performances and, of course, to stand in the middle and make decisions.

"There will undoubtably be new challenges I will face in this role, ones I am really excited about facing and helping me to develop as both an individual and as an umpire."

Naeem, who has been umpiring since 2011, including stints in the Lancashire League and Liverpool District League, said: "I obviously played professionally in Pakistan for 15 years and have spent almost as long now as an umpire in Lancashire so I feel ready to take this next step in my umpiring career.

"I can’t wait to get back into a professional environment again and hopefully I won’t just inspire my own community but also the next generations of all umpires."