Billy Bowden demoted to NZC's national panel

Billy Bowden was left out of New Zealand Cricket's (NZC) international panel of umpires after standing in 84 Tests and 200 One-Day Internationals in a major revamp of the nation's umpiring ranks. He now finds himself in the national panel along with Derek Walker and Phil Jones, while former first-class players Shaun Haig and Chris Brown have been promoted, along with Wayne Knights.
"It's a massive opportunity for the guys and they deserve it based on their umpiring performances over recent seasons," Sheldon Eden-Whaitiri, the NZC's new match officials manager, said on Thursday (June 16). "We're delighted to see more former players coming through the umpiring system and hope it continues to be seen as an attractive pathway."
Bowden's last appearance was during the Chappell-Hadlee series in Wellington in February earlier in the year, after he made his international debut against Sri Lanka in Hamilton in 1995. His Test debut had to wait an additional five years, but, he was among the audience favourites on the ICC's elite panel due to his eccentric mannerisms.
He was eventually dropped from the elite panel in 2013, but following the retirement of Tony Hill in the subsequent year, he was reinstated. That was to last only an additional year as he was left out in May 2015 after officiating his 84th Test between England and West Indies in Barbados. However, him being on New Zealand's international panel meant he could still officiate international matches.
With him now only being a member of the national panel, which is believed to be a result of the International Cricket Council expressing concern over the standard of umpires from New Zealand at the elite level, women's matches and domestic ones only are available for officiating.
NZC international panel: Chris Brown, Wayne Knights, Shaun Haig.
NZC national panel: Billy Bowden, Chris Brown, Tony Gillies, Shaun Haig, Phil Jones, Wayne Knights, Ash Mehrotra, Tim Parlane, Derek Walker.