On Sunday, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) appointed umpire Saleema Imtiaz to the ICC International Panel of Development Umpires. This nomination makes her the first Pakistani woman to join the ICC panel, allowing her to officiate women’s bilateral matches and ICC women’s events.

Saleema, who is the mother of Pakistan Women’s cricketer Kainat Imtiaz, started her umpiring career with the PCB Women’s Umpires Panel in 2008. Her career highlights include officiating at the 2022 and 2024 ACC Women’s T20 Asia Cups and the 2023 ACC Emerging Women’s Cup in Hong Kong.

Read more: PCB Aims to Modernize Faisalabad’s Iqbal Stadium for International Matches

In a statement, Saleema expressed her excitement and gratitude, stating that her appointment reflects hard work and personal sacrifices. She hopes her achievement will inspire other women in Pakistan to pursue careers in cricket.

Saleema’s first assignment as an ICC panel umpire will be the Pakistan-South Africa women’s T20I series in Multan, starting Monday. She will be joined by Nasir Hussain from the PCB Elite Panel of Umpires, Humairah Farah as the third umpire, and Muhammad Javed Malik as the match referee from the PCB International Panel of Match Referees.