Virat Kohli's Under 19 Teammate To Umpire IPL 2025 Matches

Virat Kohli’s teammate from India's 2008 U19 World Cup winning team, Tanmay Srivastava is set to make his official umpiring debut in the upcoming IPL 2025 season. Tanmay Srivastava, who played a crucial knock in the final, has been officially announced as an umpire for the upcoming edition of the T20 tournament.

In the 2008 U-19 World Cup final, India defeated South Africa thanks in large part to Srivastava. In 45.4 overs, he hit a vital 46 runs to help India reach 159. In a rain-affected 25-over encounter, India's bowlers successfully defended the low total, limiting South Africa to 103/8 and winning by 12 runs.

Tanmay played domestic cricket for Uttar Pradesh

Former Uttar Pradesh left-handed opening batsman Tanmay Srivastava was instrumental in India's victory in the 2008 U-19 World Cup. He scored 262 runs, including a vital 46 in the final, to finish as the tournament's highest scorer.

Despite having little success in the IPL, the former cricket player had a successful domestic career, amassing seven hundreds and 4918 runs at an average of 44.3 in first-class cricket and 1728 runs in List-A matches.

Srivastava started officiating domestic games five years after he retired. He will officiate his first big tournament as an umpire in the 2025 Indian Premier League.

Tanmay Srivastava Appointed as Umpire by BCCI for IPL 2025

Srivastava has been overseeing domestic cricket matches since he withdrew from professional cricket about five years ago. He has now been named an IPL 2025 umpire by the BCCI. The Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA) officially announced this on X (formerly known as Twitter).

“A true player never leaves the field—just changes the game. Wishing Tanmay Srivastava the best as he dons a new hat with the same passion!” UPCA wrote on their official X account.

A true player never leaves the field—just changes the game.
Wishing Tanmay Srivastava the best as he dons a new hat with the same passion!#UPCA #IPL #UP #PrideOfUP pic.twitter.com/wrRoW31OG2

— UPCA (@UPCACricket) March 17, 2025

In the 2008 and 2009 seasons, Srivastava was a member of Kings XI Punjab (now known as the Punjab Kings) in the Indian Premier League. Despite playing in seven games, he only scored eight runs in three innings.

After finishing the Level 2 training in two years, the 35-year-old has been given special treatment by the BCCI as an umpire. He is expected to become the first individual in IPL history to have participated in the competition as a player and an official.

I Am Still in Touch with Virat Kohli - Tanmay Srivastava

According to Tanmay Srivastava, he was not close to returning to the IPL because he had reached the end of his playing career. He made it clear that practical considerations led him to decide to become an umpire. Srivastava characterized the umpiring study process as difficult.

“I understood that was the best player I could be. I was nowhere close to playing the IPL. I had to decide if I wanted to prolong life as a player or have a longer successful second innings and I am still in touch with Virat Kohli, but I had to decide for myself and have a practical outlook.

Studying for umpiring is tough. I used to stay up at night. You have to study a lot to understand the laws and their implications,” he told the Times of India.