Cricket PNG lauds Lakani

LAKANI Oala has just returned from Bangladesh were he umpired in the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier.
Lakani passed another milestone in his career and was part of women’s cricket history where he was given a chance to umpire in his first One Day international between Bangladesh and Ireland.
Lakani is PNG’s most decorated umpire. Lakani (an ICC level 3 umpire) was the only umpire in East Asia Pacific officiating at the tournament. Recently Lakani has officiated as the tournament referee and umpire at the Pacific Games in Noumea, ICC EAP T20 qualifiers held in Port Moresby and the Australian Country cricket championships in Bunbry, Western Australia, next month.
Lakani umpired eight matches with his last match being his first ODI.
“It was a special match to umpire, being part of Bangladesh women’s cricket history,” Lakani said on his first ODI.
“I will always remember this game and the delight of the Bangladesh team after their win,” Lakani said.
Bangladesh had only achieved ODI status in the previous match defeating USA. They defeated Ireland by 82 runs to win their first-ever ODI.
“Lakani’s umpiring experience is invaluable to us at Cricket PNG.
“He brings back with him a wealth of knowledge from these tournaments, which he uses to develop our own umpires in PNG,” Greg Campbell, the CPNG general manager, said.
“He also gives us some insight to how our national squads fare on the world stage.”