Ruchira Palliyaguruge took charge of more than 100 one day internationals during his career
A first-class cricket umpire who swapped test matches for test results has graduated from Edinburgh Napier University.
Ruchira Palliyaguruge now coaches umpires after recently calling time on his career in the middle, and has completed ENU’s MSc Performance Enhancement in Sports Officiating – the world’s first Masters degree for elite referees and umpires.
Having taken charge at several World Cups, 100 one-day internationals and a test match at Lords, the Sri Lankan will pass on the knowledge and skills he developed on the course to the next generation of cricket officials.
In particular, his research focused on the role of television match officials and the mental side of being an umpire, coping with high pressure situations to make good decisions on the pitch.
Ruchira said: “Officiating at the top level can be tough. When everything goes well you hear nothing, but if something goes wrong you will hear so much about it on social media
“That's why as umpires and officials need our support.
“Not every day is good for you, sometimes you have difficult decisions and you screw up. That's what you have to be strong – and the course has helped me understand that.
“In my career, my biggest challenge was spinning pitches on the Indian subcontinent. There are grounds known as umpires’ graveyards!
“You are a rare gem if you got through games without making mistakes. Every umpire makes errors, but my studies have helped me learn about how you fix them and prepare for the next game.”
A former first-class cricketer himself, Ruchira retired from umpiring in December, bringing an end to a 15-year career in the middle. He now coaches officials in the Lanka Premier League.
He ranks the 2015 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, two T20 World Cups, six Asia Cups and a stint as TV umpire in the Ashes among his personal highlights.
However, his graduation represents a completely new achievement. He travelled from Sri Lanka to Edinburgh to collect his degree in person at the Usher Hall.
Ruchira added: “This is my first academic qualification, so I am very proud.
“I applied after seeing the course online during the pandemic. I thought it would be perfect for my career.
“It took a while to adapt to studying and completing assignments. I had never looked at the mental side of the game before I got into this.
“The degree has helped immensely to pass the knowledge on to up and coming umpires.”
Duncan Mascarenhas, Programme Leader MSc Performance Enhancement in Sports Officiating, said: “Ruchi has been a pleasure to work with. Not only is he a lovely chap, he has also designed some innovative research projects.
“With the rapid development of television match officials across sports this area often gets neglected from a training perspective.
“He explored their use of language, their calmness under pressure and how effectively they sold their decisions. Nothing of this kind has existed to date.
“Ruchi’s umpiring performance and experience speaks for itself. He’s now turning his attention towards training and development of aspiring umpires.”
Ruchira joins a list of notable sports officials to graduate from ENU’s groundbreaking programme, including its first graduates Christina Barrow and Clare Daniels, rugby ref Sara Cox, and Aussie rules football umpire John Howorth.
Ruchira graduated alongside fellow students from Edinburgh Napier University’s School of Applied Sciences.