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The post of the ICC Match Referee was instituted in
the early 1990s in an attempt to clamp down on
undue aggression and deteriorating behaviour on the
field of play. The ICC followed it up with another
move to reduce allegations of partisan umpiring. In
1994-95, they initiated the idea of a 'neutral'
(third-country) umpire partnering a 'home' umpire
in Test matches. Another significant step was taken
in 2002 when the ICC decided to have two 'neutral
umpires in all Tests and a home-neutral pair in
ODIs.
Former India captain Gundappa Vishwanath, who had a
long stint as ICC Match Referee, recently stated
that few Indians had got the opportunity to serve
as Match Referees or Umpires on ICC's Elite Panel,
when compared to the other prominent cricketing
nations.
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