40 not out!: Umpire’s four decades of service to game

Veteran Kenyan umpire Subhash Modi is celebrating 40 years of service to the game of cricket.

Modi has had the privilege of umpiring around the world and was a member of the International Cricket Council panel of umpires until 2010.

Modi, 73, is a respected figure in local cricket circles, in Eastern Africa and across the globe.

He is one of the longest-serving umpires in world cricket. Modi’s achievements have been celebrated by Cricktalk20, a North America’s first cricket magazine.

He has seen the highs and lows of cricket in his time at the centre. Recently, he was hit on the knee with a cricket ball, an injury so severe it required surgery.

Most people would have called it quits but the veteran umpire recovered and resumed his duties. One of his sons, Hitesh, was part of the golden generation of Kenyan cricketers who reached the semi-finals of 2003 Cricket World Cup co-hosted by Kenya, South Africa and Zimbabwe.

Hitesh would later make history with his father in August 2006 when they took to the field for a One Day International between Kenya and Bangladesh.

Umpire Modi would send out Hitesh after a good length delivery from Mashrafe Mortaza.

Born on March 30, 1946 in Zanzibar, Subhash’s love for the game of cricket started at an early age in 1959. The Modi family moved to Kenya for greener pastures, and in 1969 his hard work paid off as he represented the Kenya national team.

But his real passion was elsewhere — in umpiring, something he has done with dedication for 40 years.

In the many years he has represented Kenya as a cricket umpire, he has met many world leaders, among them the King of Malaysia during the 1998 Commonwealth Games.

In 1999, he met Queen Elizabeth II at the Buckingham Palace in England during that year’s World Cup.