All-woman panel to officiate at 2025 women's ODI World Cup

In a first, the upcoming women's ODI World Cup in India and Sri Lanka will feature an all-female line-up of match officials.

On Thursday, the ICC announced the panel of four match referees and 14 umpires, featuring women from nine countries for the tournament that runs from September 30 to November 2.

The match referees are Trudy Anderson (New Zealand), Shandre Fritz (South Africa), GS Lakshmi (India) and Michell Pereira (Sri Lanka).

The on-field and TV umpires are Sue Redfern (England), Claire Polosak and Eloise Sheridan (Australia), Candace la Borde and Jacqueline Williams (West Indies), Kim Cotton (New Zealand), Sarah Dambanevana (Zimbabwe), Shathira Jakir Jesy (Bangladesh), Kerrin Klaaste and Lauren Agenbag (South Africa), N Janani, Vrinda Rathi and Gayathri Venugopalan (India) and Nimali Perera (Sri Lanka).

Among them, Polosak, Williams and Redfern will be appearing in their third women's ODI World Cups, while Agenbag and Cotton will be at their second.

The panel will also have the most number of women umpires and match referees in a global ICC tournament, five more than the 13 at the 2024 T20 World Cup in the UAE.

While three recent events - the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and the two most recent women's T20 World Cups - have featured all-female panels of match officials, it hasn't happened at an ODI World Cup before.

"This marks a defining moment in the journey of women's cricket, one that we hope will pave the way for many more trailblazing stories across all facets of the sport," ICC president Jay Shah said in a statement. "The inclusion of an all-women panel of match officials is not only a major milestone but also a powerful reflection of the ICC's unwavering commitment to advancing gender equity across cricket.

"This development goes beyond symbolic value. It is about visibility, opportunity, and the creation of meaningful role models who can inspire future generations. By highlighting excellence in officiating on the global stage, we aim to spark aspiration and reinforce that leadership and impact in cricket know no gender.

"We are honoured to recognise a new chapter in the growth of the women's game. We believe the influence of this initiative will resonate far beyond this tournament, motivating more women worldwide to pursue officiating careers and helping redefine what's possible within the game."

The 13th women's ODI World Cup begins with hosts India and Sri Lanka facing off on September 30. Defending champions Australia will take on New Zealand on October 1. Each team will play the other seven teams once with the top four moving into the semi-finals.

The matches will be played in Guwahati, Indore, Visakhapatnam, Navi Mumbai and Colombo with the final scheduled for November 2.