Sarika Siva Prasad, 49, is one of the world’s rising umpiring talents. Hailing from Visakhapatnam, India he has been in Singapore since 1995, originally going there "in search of cricketing opportunities."

An umpire for 22 years, he has officiated in the Women’s World Cup 2009 in Sydney, the ICC U/19 World Cup 2008 in Malaysia and the ICC Twenty20 World Cup qualifiers last year as well as many ACC tournaments, most recently, the U-19 Elite Cup in Kuwait in April 2009.

Buddhi Bahadur Pradhan, another top class Associate nation umpire whose career closely matches Mr. Prasad’s, says about his Singapore colleague and friend, “Sarika has really done a good job in all the tournaments he has been in and has a tremendous amount of respect from his colleagues and senior judges. He is an asset to Singapore and to Asia.”

Mr. Prasad did this interview via email.

“A good umpire needs to be as invisible as possible.”

Were you a cricketer before you were an umpire?

“I started playing the game when I was a 10-year-old. I have played first class cricket in India and represented Andhra Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy, C. K. Nayudu U-22 trophy. I have represented Singapore in the Saudara Cup.”

What other positions do you hold at Singapore Cricket?

“I hold Level II ACC/Cricket Australia coaching and umpiring certification and help out with local matches as well as international duties. I am currently employed as a Senior Cricket Coach with the SCA (Singapore Cricket Association).”

What do you enjoy most about your work?

“The satisfaction of being involved in something you really love and contributing to back to the game that has made me what I am now.”

What makes a good coach?

“Being exemplary in what you teach. To develop the youngsters into good players and to make them into good and responsible human beings.“

International umpires: Pakistan’s Asad Rauf, Singapore’s Sarika Prasad and Australia’s Simon Taufel

What makes a good umpire?

“A good umpire needs to be as invisible as possible. It is the player’s game and should be allowed to be played by them, with the umpires intervening only when it is essential. If an umpire has not been mentioned in the match reports then it was a good game for the umpire!”

Next Page | “I felt very proud and honored to be able to represent the country.”