GUYANA’S most successful first-class head coach Esaun Crandon will depart Guyana today to take up his appointment as assistant coach of the West Indies senior team.
Crandon’s immediate assignment will be the home Test series against England which is set to start next Wednesday, January 23 with the first at Kensington Oval.

England will play the West Indies in three Tests, five ODIs and three T20Is, in five of the region’s top tourist destinations with the tour starting in Barbados and ending in St. Kitts.
Speaking exclusively with Chronicle Sport yesterday, the 37-year-old revealed that he has been rewarded for the hard work and sacrifices over the years.

“I’m very much appreciative of the opportunity to make a further step in my sporting career. The success of the years just didn’t happen like that or overnight’ it came with the support of other people, the players, the coaches, among others, including the GCB who gave me the opportunity in 2012. So I am definitely looking forward to the opportunity,” Crandon said.

He added, “I will just go out there and try to impart as much as possible, try to act within my strength and bring to the table what I think could help in the development of the team”.

SOLID FOUNDATION
Crandon who has been at the helm of the Guyana’s four consecutive first-class titles, further indicated that while he has left behind a solid cricketing foundation at the senior level.

“Whoever is coming in will need to coordinate well with the players and continue the work. We have made a solid foundation there … just for it to continue building, so it’s not only about winning championship every year but the goal is to produce players for the highest level,” the former Guyana fast bowler who took 90 wickets from 38 First-Class games outlined.

Currently Guyana Jaguars have solidified their position in the ongoing Cricket West Indies’ Professional Cricket League (CWI) Regional Four-day championship.
The Jaguars have created a huge gap between them and the second-place team Leeward Islands Hurricanes, moving to 80.2 points, and stretching their lead to well over 30 points.
However, Crandon is of the view that continuity is the watch word for the Jaguars’ moving forward.

“I will advise the team just to continue the work that we have started over the years. We have worked tremendously hard to get to where we at the moment. Continuity is very important, keep it simple, continue to strive for excellence and create that environment where you have professionals who are willing to work hard,” he said.
Meanwhile, the second most prolific Test cricketer in Windies history, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, was appointed as interim assistant coach of the Guyana Jaguars team with immediate effect.

Chanderpaul, 43, is respected for having a shrewd cricketing mind and isn’t the type to ignite controversies.
He’s known to manage players exceedingly well, in other words, someone the board can do ‘business’ with.

During a Test career that spanned two decades (1994-2015), Chanderpaul played a record 164 Tests for the Windies, scoring 11 867 runs at an average of 51.37. During that time he scored 30 Test centuries and 66 fifties and was a stabilising force in the Windies middle order.

He was also prolific in ODIs, amassing 8 778 runs at an average of 41.60 in 268 matches during which he scored 11 centuries and 59 half-centuries. Chanderpaul announced his retirement from international cricket in January 2016.
A release from the GCB indicated that Chanderpaul’s appointment comes at an opportune time in the development of Guyana’s cricket, where the use of knowledgeable and experienced coaches can lend effective support to the programme which has shown significant growth.

“Shiv’s appointment is aided by his on- and off-field experiences in the sport. He has been a very productive ambassador having played all levels of cricket and it is expected that he will transfer valuable knowledge to the Jaguars,” the release said.
Rayon Griffith will perform the duties as the Jaguars head coach. Further, as part of GCB’s coaching development programme, Julian Moore will now be joining the Academy with immediate effect as the Academy coach.