Dubai, Nov 21 (IANS): In a ground-breaking decision on Tuesday, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced equal pay for female match officials, signalling its commitment to gender equality in cricket.

The reforms include the equalisation of match-day pay for ICC umpires, regardless of whether they are officiating men's or women's cricket matches.

The initiative, which is set to be implemented in January 2024, marks a pivotal moment in cricket's history, as it takes another stride towards equal opportunities in the sport.

The Chief Executives’ Committee (CEC) also recommended including at least one neutral umpire in every series of the ICC Women’s Championship, in line with the long-standing practice in men’s international cricket.

"The changes to the gender eligibility regulations resulted from an extensive consultation process and are founded in science, aligning with the core principles developed during the review," remarked ICC Chief Executive Geoff Allardice.

The ICC Board also approved new gender eligibility regulation for women’s cricket according to which male-to-female participants who have undergone male puberty will not be eligible to compete in the international women’s game, irrespective of any surgical or gender reassignment treatment they may have undertaken.

ICC will revisit these regulations within two years to align with the sport's evolving landscape. At the domestic level, though, these regulations will remain under the jurisdiction of individual member boards.