Rudi Koertzen, a former South African umpire, died in an accident on Tuesday, August 9. When he passed away, he was 73 years old. According to sources, the crash that killed Koertzen and three other individuals happened at a place called Riverdale in South Africa.
After playing golf over the weekend, Koertzen was traveling from Cape Town to his name at Despatch in Nelson Mandela Bay. The discoveries were made by Rudi Koertzen Jr., the late umpire’s son.
Koertzen Jr. was cited on Algoa FM News as stating, “He went on a golf tournament with several of his friends, and they were due to return back on Monday, but it appears they opted to play another round of golf.”
Koertzen started his adventure in 1981, and during India’s visit to South Africa in 1992, he had his first opportunity to officiate an international game. The first time television replays were used to call a hitter out for running out, as so happened, was during this series.
Koertzen officiated the first Test at Port Elizabeth at the age of 43. He was selected as a full-time umpire by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 1992. After becoming the second umpire to stand in 100 Tests and 200 ODIs, he never looked back.
In addition, Koertzen served as a third umpire for the 2003 and 2007 World Cup championship games. He made the decision to give up his boots in 2010 during a Test match between Pakistan and Australia.
Prior to their three-match Test series against the hosts, South Africa is now playing an exhibition game against the England Lions in Canterbury.
The South African players made the decision to wear black armbands throughout the game in memory of the late umpire.
