Kumar Sangakkara To Become First MCC President For More Than 12 Months Since World War II by Jatin Malu
Source: Republicworld
Kumar Sangakkara is set to serve as the President of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) for another year due to unusual circumstances in the wake of COVID-19.
Former Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara is set to serve as the President of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) for another year due to unusual circumstances in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Kumar Sangakkara had become the first non-British President of the MCC in October last year. Kumar Sangakkara’s tenure has been extended for another year by the MCC. The tenure of the MCC President is generally for a 12 months but it was only extended to more than 1 year in the past during the 2 World Wars, the MCC said.
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Kumar Sangakkara’s tenure as MCC President set to be extended
The recommendation for Kumar Sangakkara’s extension will be sent to the club members at the club’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) on June 24 this year. According to an ESPNCricinfo report, the club will also consider raising funds through a new life membership scheme, in order to keep the redevelopment of the Compton and Edrich Stands on course during the Covid-19 pandemic.
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There have 168 presidents of the MCC since 1821 and Kumar Sangakkara is all set to become only the 4th man to serve 2 terms as the President of the MCC. Lord Hawke (1914-18) and Stanley Christopherson (1939-45) both served for longer periods as MCC Presidents during the first and second World War respectively.
“The disruption to the global cricketing landscape caused by the outbreak of Covid-19 Coronavirus has led the Committee to recommend that Sangakkara, who began his term of office on 1 October 2019, be invited to serve as President of the Club until 30 September 2021,” the MCC said in a release.
The coronavirus crisis has caused all international and domestic cricket around the world to be either cancelled or postponed. The inaugural edition of ‘The Hundred’ was also postponed to 2021. The ECB has suspended all the cricketing activities in the country till July 1 due to the outbreak, which has wreaked havoc globally but more so in the United Kingdom.
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