Vrinda and Janani have officiated in Cooch Behar U-19 matches besides doing one U-23 CK Nayudu Trophy game. Their induction into the ICC panel will now see them officiating international matches between ICC's Associate nations. While Vrinda is a former cricketer, having represented Mumbai University, Janani has never played the game at any level but has followed it closely. "I grew up watching cricket matches on Doordarshan. I spent most of my childhood watching cricket and tennis on TV. I always wanted to be involved with cricket and saw umpiring as the perfect avenue," Janani told mid-day over the phone from Chennai.

Janani, who grew up watching and admiring English umpire David Shepherd and India's S Venkataraghavan on TV, felt Pakistan's Aleem Dar is the best umpire currently. "At international level, everybody is good but I feel Dar is the best. The decisions he takes cannot be questioned. Even in this era of DRS [Decision Review System], most of his decisions are correct. I also admire Kumar Dharmasena's progression to ICC's Elite panel," said Janani.

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Vrinda, meanwhile, enjoyed her initial cricketing journey as a bowler for Mumbai University before a scoring stint at the 2013 Women's World Cup made her pick umpiring as a career. "At the 2013 World Cup, I watched New Zealand umpire Kathy Cross. Seeing her officiating a match, I felt I too could do so. In the same year, I cleared the MCA [Mumbai Cricket Association] umpiring examination," said Vrinda, who felt that umpiring is a lot tougher than playing.

"As a player, you can just go out and express yourself without thinking about the consequences. If you fail, you can make a comeback in the next innings or the next match. But as an umpire, you cannot have a bad day or even a bad over because it's impossible to make a comeback," Vrinda concluded.

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