MELBOURNE (Reuters)
Australia's World Cup-winning seam bowler Paul Reiffel has made a cricket comeback - as an umpire.

Reiffel started the 2001-02 domestic campaign as Victoria's captain, but retired in January in a shock mid-season announcement. He registered under another name to umpire a Victoria club competition match in Melbourne on Saturday to avoid attracting attention.

Reiffel said he would draw on his playing experience in his new role as an umpire. "I know all the tricks because I've tried them all," he was quoted as saying in the Sunday Herald Sun newspaper in Melbourne.

The laconic Reiffel played in 35 Tests, taking 104 wickets at 26.96 and scoring 955 runs at 26.52 with six half-centuries. He is best remembered for his strong contributions on the tour of West Indies in 1995 and the tour of England in 1997.

A member of Australia's World Cup-winning side of 1999, Reiffel dropped two outfield catches in the tied semi-final against South Africa, remarking casually to team-mates later that they would never have been involved in such a dramatic and memorable finish without his intervention.

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