Lord's Test to be Rudi Koertzen's 100th Test

Rudi Koertzen will become the second umpire to stand in 100 Tests.

London: Rudi Koertzen, the South African umpire, will become the second official after Jamaican Steve Bucknor to stand in a 100 Tests at the Lord's Test starting on Thursday.

"It is a huge personal achievement and a dream come true," Koertzen said. The achievement comes less than a week after he became the first umpire to stand in 200 one-day games.

The ICC umpires' and referees' manager Vince van der Bijl congratulated Koertzen on his feat. "Rudi is a man of fine character. He is hugely respected throughout the world and international players and captains regard him very highly," he said. "It is a sure sign of the quality and consistency of his umpiring and decision-making since he made his international debut in 1992.

"He has seen it all and has maintained throughout his professionalism a sense of calm and authority as well as the umpires' traditional values throughout the changing face of cricket. ICC is proud and considers itself blessed to have men of his calibre officiating and serving cricket."

Cricket South Africa's CEO Gerald Majola also praised Koertzen. "Rudi Koertzen is one of South African cricket's greatest sons," he said. "He has added immense value at the highest levels of the game for almost two decades and CSA salutes him.

"It is most fitting that he is making his Test century at Lord's, the home of cricket. He deserves to have his name on the century honours board in the famous pavilion."