The bedrock of West Indies batting, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, was honoured on Friday evening with an ‘Honourary Membership for Life’ by the Everest Cricket Club (ECC).
This is the first time that the left-hander has been given such an honour, one which he, quite bizarrely, never received at the club which he honed his skills as a youngster- the Georgetown Cricket Club.
President of the ECC, Rajesh Singh, conferred the membership on Chanderpaul during a simple ceremony on the pavillion of the club. The former world number one ranked Test batsman is the first person to be given ‘Honourary Membership for Life’ by the club.
Chanderpaul, the former West Indies captain, and his son, national Under-19 opener, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, recently joined the ECC.
A veteran of 144 Test matches, Chanderpaul is the region’s second highest Test runscorer behind Brian Lara with 10,342 runs at an average of 50.20. He has scored 25 Test hundreds. In ODIs, the middle-order batsman has scored 8778 runs from 268 games at an average of 41.60 with 11 centuries.
Singh said the ECC is pleased to honour Chanderpaul in such a way, as he has made a sterling contribution to the game of cricket at the club, county, country, regional and international levels.
The Wisden Cricketer-of-the-Year 2008 said he is humbled by the initiative, noting that he will continue to what he knows best, and that is playing the game with the same passion, commitment and dedication that has been the hallmark of his illustrious career.
Source:Guyana Times