Piloo Reporter

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A brief biography

Gaurav Gupta, Sep 4, 2023: The Times of India

Piloo Reporter was a former international umpire.


In his long and illustrious career spanning 28 years, Reporter, a very popular umpire because of his jovial nature and his vigorous style of signalling a boundary, stood in 14 Tests and 22 ODIs. Former Pakistan captain Imran Khan invited him, along with another Indian VK Ramaswamy, to officiate in the Pakistan versus West Indies series in Pakistan in 1986. When he and Ramaswamy stood in the Lahore Test, the second of the three-match series as Imran wanted to end the stigma of Pakistan winning because of biased umpiring, they became the first pair of neutral umpires in the world since 1912. The ICC then started experimenting with one neutral umpire in Tests from 1992 onwards. Reporter stood in seven matches in the 1992 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.


At the Gaddafi Stadium, the fans welcomed Reporter with the famous Bappi Lahiri hit from Aap Ki Khatir,“
Bombay Se Aaya Mera Dost, Dost Ko Salaam Karo.” “Very sad to hear about the passing away of Piloo. He was not only a good umpire but also a very humorous person. We umpired many matches together from 1980 to 1992. 1986 was a memorable tour for both of us in Pakistan for the Test series between Pakistan and West Indies,” Ramaswamy told TOI from Hyderabad.


“He was not only a fine umpire, but also a terrific human being. Very sad news,” said cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar. “He officiated in many matches that I played in. What I liked about him is that despite being busy with international cricket, he would officiate in all the local tournaments in Mumbai, including the Times Shield. I still remember an incident regarding him that happened in 1981. I was playing in a Times Shield A Division match for Tata against Mahindra at Islam Gymkhana. I had scored ahundred and was losing my concentration. He noticed it, and whispered in my ear: ‘Have you got a batting prize in the Times Shield?’ I said ‘no.’ I went on to score a double hundred and won that batting prize,” said former India skipper Dilip Vengsarkar.
“He was a nice gentleman, a fair umpire and a jovial person, who kept the humour going in the field,” he praised. His first match as an umpire in a Ranji Trophy match was at the age of 29. He made his international debut as an umpire in 1984 in the Test between England and India in Delhi. He also stood in ex-Zimbabwe skipper Heath Streak’s international debut game, in the Hero Cup match between Zimbabwe and South Africa in Bengaluru. Ironically, both passed away on the same day.
Reporter’s sister, Madhumati, was an actress and famous dancer.