Full name Simon James Arnold Taufel
Born January 21, 1971, St Leonards, Sydney, New South Wales
Current age 50 years 42 days
Other Umpire, Referee
Test debut | Australia v West Indies at Melbourne, Dec 26-29, 2000 scorecard |
Last Test | England v South Africa at Lord's, Aug 16-20, 2012 scorecard |
Test matches | 74 |
Test statistics | |
ODI debut | Australia v Sri Lanka at Sydney, Jan 13, 1999 scorecard |
Last ODI | England v South Africa at Lord's, Sep 2, 2012 scorecard |
ODI matches | 174 |
ODI statistics | |
T20I debut | Kenya v New Zealand at Durban, Sep 12, 2007 scorecard |
Last T20I | Sri Lanka v West Indies at Colombo (RPS), Oct 7, 2012 scorecard |
T20I matches | 34 |
T20I statistics |
In a field where middle-age has been the norm, it was a supreme vote of confidence that Simon Taufel was asked to umpire his first Test at 29. Over the next decade, he repaid that faith by being named the ICC's Umpire of the Year every year from 2004 to 2008. His rise was so rapid that he quickly became one of the most experienced officials on the Elite Panel, despite being by far its youngest member. But that heavy workload also took its toll on Taufel, who in 2008 said he wanted to spend more time with his wife and children and was taking his cricket future "year by year". Respected by the players for his consistently accurate decision-making, Taufel stood in three World Cups and earned the chance to officiate in the 2011 final, when Australia failed to reach the decider for the first time in five World Cups. A calm and confident official who worked hard on his fitness, Taufel developed while on the international scene. When he first arrived he hunched over as the bowler let fly, lowering his eyeline like umpires of old. That habit disappeared as Taufel's self-assurance increased, although his concentration did not wane.
ICC Umpire of the Year 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008