5 most experienced Test umpires

Whilst they don't make the headlines, the umpires play an important role in the sport of cricket. The protectors of integrity, the men in white coats can decide the fate of a match.

It was not until 1992 that the concept of neutral umpires was formally trialled in international cricket. One neutral was appointed per Test on an experimental basis, and the system was fully implemented two years later.

The natural progression to two neutrals was made in 2002, starting with India's tour of the West Indies. The move was made in order to dispel the age-old accusation that home umpires were biased.

Here are the five most experienced Test umpires, in terms of Tests, stood in.

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#5 David Shepherd

David Shepherd was a first-class cricketer before his umpiring career began and represented Gloucestershire. After his appointment as a first-class umpire in 1981, within two years he was umpiring at the World Cup.

He stood in 92 Test matches, between August 1985 and June 2005, the most of any English umpire. Shepherd was known for his jolly character and was universally liked by players and spectators alike. He passed away on 27 October 2009.

#4 Daryl Harper

Australian Harper became an umpire at just 32 years of age, in 1983. By 1987 he was umpiring at first-class level.

However, it was not until November 1998 that he made the progression to Test cricket. He stood in the second Ashes test in Perth, as well as at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the fourth Test.

After promotion to the National Grid Panel of International Umpires, he began to appear in Test matches away from Australia as the designated independent umpire.

Harper officiated in 95 Tests until November 2011 and was the Third Umpire for a trial of the 'player referral' system in 2009. The system now known as the decision review system (DRS) has since gone on to play an important role in cricket.

#3 Rudi Koertzen

Koertzen was a South African Test umpire who stood in 108 Tests between 1992 and 2010. Never a professional cricketer, he turned to umpiring in 1981. During his debut series as an umpire, television replays were used for the first time to assist with run-out decisions.

His umpiring style was very well known, nicknamed 'Slow Death', Koertzen would give a batsman out by raising his left arm very slowly.

In 1999, he was at the centre of controversy when he refused a bribe to fix the outcome of a match between the West Indies and India. Then in 2000, he stood in the Test match between South Africa and England, where South African captain Hansie Cronje had been approached by a bookmaker.

He stood in his final Test in July 2010, between Pakistan and Australia at Headingley.

#2 Aleem Dar

Pakistani Dar is the only one of the top five who is still standing as a Test umpire. Before his umpiring career, he played first-class cricket for Allied Bank, Gujranwala Cricket Association, Lahore and Pakistan Railways as a right-handed batsman and a leg-break bowler.

He made his Test umpiring debut in October 2003 in a match between Bangladesh and England and has gone on to appear in 115* Tests to date.

In 2005, along with Steve Bucknor, he received death threats on the last day of England's final Test against South Africa at Centurion, after perceived poor decisions.

Dar is a member of the ICC Elite umpire panel and has won three consecutive ICC Umpire of the Year awards in 2009, 2010 and 2011. He holds the record as the most experienced international umpire after officiating 322 matches.

#1 Steve Bucknor

Despite retiring nearly a decade ago, Bucknor still holds the record of 128 Test matches stood in. The Jamaican umpired Tests for 20 years between 1989 and 2009 and also officiated five World Cup finals.

He was a qualified football referee and was in charge for a World Cup qualifier between El Salvador and the Netherlands Antilles in 1988. Before this, in 1964 he played as a goalkeeper for his country in a schoolboy international versus Brazil.

In 2008, he was removed by the ICC from officiating a Test between Australia and India following several poor decisions in the match prior, in Sydney. Bucknor blamed the Indian cricket board's financial power for his dismissal.

The ICC confirmed in February 2009 that Bucknor had decided to retire from umpiring in March 2009. His final Test was between South Africa and Australia at Cape Town.