Bangladeshi umpire Sharfuddoula Saikat officiates in IND-NZ Vadodara ODI amid diplomatic tensions

Amid rising diplomatic tensions between India and Bangladesh, there was an unusual event that made the headlines on Sunday (Jan 11). Playing at the Baroda Cricket Association (BCA) Stadium in Vadodara, Bangladesh official Sharfuddoula Saikat took charge as the third umpire for the India vs New Zealand ODI. This comes as both nations are currently embroiled in a dispute over banning Bangladeshi players from participating in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Bangladesh umpire in India vs New Zealand match

In what has already been a major issue in the last few weeks, India and Bangladesh have been embroiled in a diplomatic row, following the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) ban on Mustafizur Rahman from playing in IPL 2026. As a consequence, the broadcast of IPL was banned in Bangladesh for the upcoming season.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) also asked the International Cricket Council (ICC) to shift their matches in the T20 World Cup from India to a neutral venue (preferably Sri Lanka). However, that request was officially rejected by the ICC, meaning Bangladesh will have to travel to India despite their lack of interest.

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However, among all those issues, Bangladesh official Sharfuddoula Saikat was in charge of the India vs New Zealand match as a third umpire. He was seen taking charge as part of an official panel from the ICC and has a non-objection certificate (NOC) to work for the apex cricket body in India.

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What happened in the match?

At the time of writing, at mid-innings break, New Zealand posted 300/8 in their 50 overs with Daryl Mitchell top scoring. He scored 84 runs off 71 deliveries while opening batters Devon Conway (56) and Henry Nicholls (62) were also amongst the runs for the visitors. The opening pair put together a stand of 117 runs for the opening wicket before Nicholls was dismissed by Harshit Rana. India then made a storming comeback with the ball, reducing New Zealand to 239/7.

Mohammed Siraj, Harshit Rana and Prasidh Krishna all ended with two wickets each, while Kuldeep Yadav also got a scalp.