Shiv Chanderpaul All-Weather practice facility

Jan 15, 2020 Sports

GCB hands over facility to Everest, 3 more to be built

By Sean Devers

The rainy conditions yesterday at the Everest Cricket Club failed to put a damper on a simple but significant handing ceremony of the Shiv Chanderpaul all-weather practice facility by the Guyana Cricket Board to Everest.

GCB’s Anand Sanasie and Everest President Mansoor Nadir shake hands in a symbolic gesture to seal the deal.

Mansoor Nadir and Anand Sanasie shake hand in front of the Shiv Chanderpaul practice facility as members of Jaguars team, a female Everest Staff and GCB’s TDO Colin Stuart share the moment.

The facility, which cost approximately $3.5Million, is a joint venture by the GCB and the Camp Road club which was formed in October 1913 as the East Indian Cricket Club before the name was changed to Everest in 1970.
Present yesterday were GCB’s secretary Anand Sanasie, its Territorial Development Office Colin Stuart and GCB’s Salina Bacchus along which Everest’s President Mansoor Nadir.
Sanasie, one of the Directors of Cricket West Indies (CWI), said the building of an all-weather facility would benefit both the Cricket Board and Everest, which made its debut as a first Class venue in 1997 when England toured the West Indies.
Sanasie noted that the facility will not only benefit the Everest players and Cricket Guyana Inc. (CGI) since the Jaguars Academy players conduct their training sessions at Everest, but also players in Georgetown and Demerara.
“The GCB plans to construct similar facilities in Bush Lot in West Berbice, Parika Saleem on the East Bank of Essequibo and Linden by December.
Bayrock was earmarked for this project but since another facility (an Athletics Stadium with Football pitch in the middle) has started there we will have find another plot of Land in Linden,” explained Sanasie.
“All of these facilities will have the names of Administrators or players who have made a significant impact to the developmen

Everest President Mansoor Nadir (3rd from left) and GCB Secretary Anand Sanasie is flanked by GCB’s Salina Bacchus (right) and Colin Stuart and an Everest staff member.

t of Guyana’s cricket. These facilities will be in addition to what will be a State of the Art Stadium at LBI when fully completed,” informed Sanasie.
Sanasie said that the Pavilion at LBI will be named after former West Indies great Lance Gibbs, who was the first bowler to take 300 Test wickets, since some of the wood from the Lance Gibbs stand at Bourda was used on its construction.
When asked about the Practice facility built through the Sanford development project on the GNIC ground, Sanansie revealed that it was constructed to house the Demerara Board’s Head Quarters but the GCB progress was stalled due to land issues after the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) got involved.
Nadir, the President of the club which hosted seven First-Class and seven List A matches, said this facility will produce more cricketers for the club and thanked the GCB for their partnership with Everest.
“Sports do more for a Nation than most other things and while club members will get the first preference to use the facility, once it is available, groups of cricketers will be allowed to use it in a structured manner at no cost,” the former Minister of Labour in the previous Administration informed.
“This (practice facility) will also help to improve Guyana’s cricket since this is the home of the Guyana Jaguars especially on days like this when it’s raining and we promise to properly maintain it,” Nadir said.
Stuart, a former West Indies Test pacer, spoke about the advantages that the practice nets can provide for the younger players at Everest.
“The GCB’s Cricket Development Committee knows that this will provide another option for the younger players who cannot get to practice in the ‘middle’ which would usually be used by the senior players in the afternoons,” said Stuart, who urged the players to make use of the facility and to practice in the right way.

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