Shepherd: An umpire and a gentleman

It was not David Shepherd's size that earned him respect, but his no-nonsense attitude on the pitch.

And on Tuesday, after 24 long years of service, umpire Shepherd finally decided to call it a day.

Cricket will miss his headmaster-like figure walking out of the pavilion to officiate a match. For even those who have interacted with him only once, it is difficult to forget this energetic personality. Ask him a question and he would patiently explain: much like a teacher does to a student.

Incidentally, just before taking up umpiring as a career, Shepherd had qualified as a school teacher.

It was way back in 1988 that I first interacted with David Shepherd, soon after he had officiated in the 1987 World Cup. That was when an organiser in-charge of the umpire's room in Mumbai informed me that Shepherd was an ardent stamp collector and would readily oblige for an interview if I could give him some stamps! Incidentally, Shepherd, along with his brother, ran a local post office in North Devon.

In those days, unlike the legendary Dicky Bird, Shepherd had spent only three years as a Test umpire. In fact, he was better known as a former player for Glamorgan county who had played along with stalwarts Zaheer Abbas and Mike Procter. But soon he had also earned the reputation of being a strong umpire. Although he gave the impression of being very jovial, he did remark once that he got along well with players only because of his attitude.

"We tell every young cricketer to respect the man in the white coat, but many forget that as an umpire you too have a duty. You should respect the cricketer too," he believed.

It was not surprising that very often cricketers would put their arms around him on the field.

But how did they manage to remain so friendly despite his firmness in taking decisions?

"I always believe that cricket is a very sentimental sport and I have a lot of affection for cricketers. Though I maintain a good relationship, I've always been stern even with the most famous cricketer. I make sure I'm impartial on the ground," he said.

Yes, Shepherd could be stern. Can one forget the long lecture given to Mike Atherton after he sledged at Sachin Tendulkar at Edgbaston?

What also made him strong was a firm control over his emotions. But the only time he could not hide his feelings was just before the 2003 World Cup final at Johannesburg. He was to officiate for the third time in a World Cup final.

"I am lucky to have done something I loved all my life," he had remarked.

Shepherd was aware that he would not be able to officiate the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies. Ironically, he called stumps on his career in the West Indies.