Aleem Dar will retire from all umpiring at the end of Pakistan’s current domestic season, ending a celebrated career that ran for nearly a quarter of a century.
Dar, 56, had already stepped down from the ICC’s Elite Panel of umpires in March 2023 but as part of the International Panel was still eligible to stand in ODIs and T20Is. He stood in a T20I between Pakistan and New Zealand in April this year. Pakistan have a busy home season, though mostly with Tests; they do host an ODI tri-series against New Zealand and South Africa in February 2025 which, in theory, represents Dar’s last chance to stand in an international. PSL 2025, where Dar has been a regular official, will likely take place in May this year and could be the opportunity for a high-profile farewell.
At his peak, Dar was widely acknowledged as the best umpire in the world, winning the ICC’s David Shepherd trophy for Umpire of the Year award three years in a row from 2009 through to 2011. In the age of neutral umpires, he was the first from Pakistan to break through, appointed on the ICC’s elite panel when it was established in 2002. He subsequently forged a successful and respected career, standing in four World Cup finals and a record-breaking 145 Tests and 222 ODIs.
“Umpiring has been my life for nearly 25 years and I have cherished the privilege of officiating some of the most iconic matches involving the greatest players of this generation,” Dar said in a statement. “Throughout my career, I’ve strived to uphold the highest standards of sportsmanship, and it has been an honour to work alongside some of the finest match officials in the world.”
In recent years, as he has cut back from his on-field role, Dar has set up a charity – the Aleem Dar Foundation – that provides a free ambulance service as well as a blood bank and transfusion for thalassemia patients. It is there that he intends to spend more time.
“However, all great journeys must eventually come to an end, and the time has come for me to focus fully on my social and charity work. My hospital project and other initiatives are very close to my heart and require my full devotion and attention.”
Dar played 17 first-class and 18 List-A matches between 1986 and 1998 as a legspinner, before he made his first-class umpiring debut during the 1998-99 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. He said he hopes to continue working as a mentor and guide to the next generation of match officials.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s former captain Shakib Al Hasan, facing prosecution for his relationship with the country’s former leader, said on Thursday he would soon retire from international cricket but hoped to play at least one more match back home first.
Shakib is facing murder charges along with dozens of other members of ex-premier Sheikh Hasina Wajid’s party who have been accused of culpability in a deadly police crackdown on protesters.The 37-year-old, who briefly served as a lawmaker under Hasina this year, has not returned to Bangladesh since the toppling of her government last month in a student-led revolution.
Shakib, who has represented Bangladesh in 70 Tests, 247 ODIs and 129 T20 matches since his international debut in 2006, said that next year’s ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan would be his last international outing.
But he added that he wanted to return home for a slated two-Test series against South Africa, and had asked the Bangladesh Cricket Board if he could come back.“It’s my desire, I have said this to the BCB and the selectors,” Shakib told reporters ahead of Friday’s second Test against India in Kanpur.
“They agreed with me, that they are trying to organise everything if possible, so that I can go back to Bangladesh, play those two Test matches in Mirpur and finish my Test career there.”He added: “If that doesn’t happen maybe this is my last one.”
