Unrequited passion for playing cricket encouraged me to take up umpiring: Aleem Dar

KARACHI - Umpire Aleem Dar has said that his fierce desire to play for the Pakistan team not being fulfilled was the reason behind his decision to take up umpiring.

“I realized that perhaps it was too late to catch that train, but to break the romance with my passion for this game was not possible, so I made a life-changing decision,” PakPassion.net quoted Dar, as saying.

“Instead of occupying the crease as a player, I contented myself with staying on the turf as an umpire,” he added.

The 42-year-old said that he had to face a severe uphill battle to realize his dream, as umpiring is hardly the most established profession in Pakistan.

“Initially I started supervising cricket matches in local club tournaments, but there was hardly enough money to make it into a career to earn bread and butter for the family, so for a short interval, I thought of scrapping the whole idea,” Dar said.

“However, powered by the motivation of my beloved wife and consistent pursuance of my respected friend Azhar Zaidi, I reverted back on my decision,” he added.

Dar further cited legendary umpire Steve Bucknor as a source of inspiration, guidance and companionship.

“Steve Bucknor is my favorite international umpire and my role model in the umpiring profession. He was closely associated with me in the initial part of my international career, and lent me maximum support as a senior in the trade, and guided me in carrying out my assignments,” he said. (ANI)