Sri Lankan cricket legend Kumar Sangakkara’s term as the president of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is set to be extended by the MCC Committee till next year due to the “extraordinary circumstances” caused by the global Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Sangakkara, who began his term as the MCC President on 1 October 2019, will now continue to serve his second term until 30 September 2021 in a wake of the disruption to the global cricketing calendar due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis across the globe.
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The MCC Committee recommended that extension in Sangakkara’s tenure which will be approved by the Club’s Members at the Annual General Meeting on 24 June.
Since 1821, the MCC, the custodian of cricket’s laws, have seen 168 presidents and Sangakkara – who was awarded Honorary Life Membership of the Club in 2012 and since then he is an active member of the MCC's World Cricket committee, will be the only the 4th man to serve 2 terms as the MCC President.
The MCC announced it in a release, “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.”
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The statement further reads: “The motion will need to be approved by the Club's Members at the Annual General Meeting, which has been rescheduled to 24 June. Whilst Presidents of MCC only normally serve for a twelve-month period, it is not unprecedented for longer terms to be introduced to respond to extraordinary circumstances. During the First and Second World Wars, Lord Hawke (1914-18) and Stanley Christopherson (1939-45) served for longer periods.”
Noteworthy, Sangakkara has recently captained MCC during Pakistan tour – the Club’s first tour to the country since 1973 in February this year to encourage international teams to visit Pakistan again.
(With ANI Inputs)
