WICB showers congratulations on Chanderpaul

September 11, 2008

ST JOHN’S, Antigua (CMC) – The hierarchy of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) showered congratulations on West Indies batting star Shivnarine Chanderpaul yesterday for his ICC Cricketer-of-the-Year award.

The 34-year-old left-hander became the first West Indies player to claim a major prize at the International Cricket Council (ICC) Awards when he copped the Cricketer-of-the-Year honours in Dubai yesterday.

And the WICB’s president Julian Hunte and chief executive officer Donald Peters have issued immediate congratulatory messages to the history-making Guyanese.

“On behalf of the West Indies Cricket Board, I want to congratulate him. It is an award he truly deserves. I also want to extend congratulations to his wife Amy as well, who has been with him though thick and thin,” Hunte said.

During the voting period, Chanderpaul played eight Test matches, scoring 819 runs at a terrific average of 91.00, including three centuries and six fifties, all of which were against the top seven teams in the world.

He also played 13 One-Day International (ODI) matches during that time, finishing top of the averages with 74.75 having scored 598 runs, a haul that included a century and five fifties.

That form propelled the outstanding Guyanese to No.1 in the ICC batting rankings for the first time ever in his career.

“Shivnarine Chanderpaul should be admired for his dedication and commitment to West Indies cricket,” Hunte said.

“He is a valuable member of West Indies team and I can think of no one playing in world cricket at the moment, who is more deserving of this award. When you think of Shiv, you immediately see a young man, who demonstrates to us all what it means to work hard and be totally committed,” added Hunte.

Chanderpaul, who had also made the short-list last year, fought off competition from other nominees Mahela Jayawardene from Sri Lanka, as well as South Africa’s Graeme Smith and Dale Steyn, to take the top award.

Peters praised Chanderpaul for topping a high quality of performers for the award.

“To be ranked the Cricketer-of-the- Year at a time when international players’ performances are so high, is a remarkable achievement.

We at the West Indies Cricket Board are proud of Chanderpaul and I am sure that all the people of Guyana and the entire West Indies will be equally proud of this wonderful honour,” Peters said.

“I can only hope that this global award to one of our own will be the catalyst that drives all cricketers in the West Indies to set their goals higher,” Peters added.

Chanderpaul was also named in the ICC World Test Team-of-the-Year and also challenged for the Test Player-of-the-Year, which went to South African pacer Dale Steyn

Source: Guyana Chronicle