Born in 1990 in the quiet town of Lalmonirhat, Shathira Jakir Jessy grew up with dreams bigger than the boundaries set around her. With a banker father and a school head-teacher mother cheering her on, she first entered BKSP through shooting.
But when the doors finally opened for women in cricket in 2007, Jessy knew where her heart truly belonged.
Her playing career with the national team was brief, just two ODIs and a T20I between 2011 and 2013, but it was filled with grit and pride. Her squad won silver at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou.
Even when she faced the heartbreak of being dropped from the team in 2012, she didn’t let it define her. Instead, she kept playing domestically, even making a comeback to the field just three months after becoming a mother.
Jessy’s journey into umpiring started early, when she passed her exams back in 2009, but it took more than a decade for the real chance to arrive. In 2022, she finally got her breakthrough, making her debut as a match official in the Independence Cup. Soon, she was breaking barriers, officiating boys’ school cricket matches and even standing in the prestigious Dhaka Premier League.
Recognition soon followed. She was named to the ICC’s Development Panel of Umpires and went on to officiate in the Women’s Asia Cup, including the final and at the ICC U-19 Women’s T20 World Cup.
In 2025, Jessy stands on the brink of history once more, becoming the first Bangladeshi woman to officiate at the senior Women’s ODI World Cup. Her achievement serves as a testament to how passion and perseverance can turn dreams into milestones.