By Elroy Stephney

EVEN at the tender age of 18, talented and ambitious Aunkaar Persaud is confident of becoming a professional cricket umpire. Persaud, who attended the Anna Regina Secondary School and graduated in 2017, already wrote the Preliminary Umpires Examination last year and obtained a 90% pass mark.

The quiet-spoken Persaud told Chronicle Sport that his focus was always to follow cricket wherever it leads him. While acknowledging that his ambition was to become a cricketer; a position he quickly reversed to begin studying the laws of the game.
He posited that taking such a path wasn’t quite difficult since he already had a fair knowledge of playing at the school level.

“I had a slight setback though when I became ill and had to undergo surgery. I was bed-ridden for a while and thought that my dreams were going to fall apart. Nevertheless I recovered, thanks to prayers and the support of my family.”

The slimly built teenager, who resides in Richmond on the Essequibo Coast, disclosed that his passion for the game and the encouragement that he has received from his parents, as well as from national umpire Shannon Crawford and coach Forbes Daniels, has driven him to explore the exciting opportunities that exist in the field of umpiring.

“I know my ability and the rewards that are on offer being a professional umpire. Ultimately it will take hard work, sacrifice and commitment as well as mental and physical training to achieve my goals, but I’m prepared for the long road,” he summarised his intentions.

Not many individuals in Essequibo are desirous of pursuing the profession, yet Persaud is not daunted by the lack of interest. In fact, he sees it as an ideal launching pad since he declared, “I want to be the best that Essequibo has produced in this field.”
The first senior national umpire to emerge from the county was Dasroy Balgobin while other notable representatives include Zabier Zakier, Wazeer Dhanraj, Muneshwar Rup, Zaheer Mohamed, Delvin Austin and Anwar Baksh who have officiated on the intercounty circuit at various levels with distinction.

Persaud also plans on continuing his studies since he would like to qualify himself as a veterinarian. He acquired six subjects CXC and has vowed to further enhance his academic credentials.

“I would like to merge my academic upbringing with umpiring since not every day you umpire, so I would have my job to supplement my livelihood.” he contended.
The sky is the limit for this affable and firm individual whose work ethic is impeccable. ‘I am continuing to keep abreast with the constant changes with regard to the cricketing laws and conditions since it is vital to earn the respect of the players.” he boasted.

His favourite international umpire is Pakistani Aleem Dar who he contends has been a pillar of strength in the middle despite the demanding pressures of the job. While Persaud remains upbeat about his future in the sport, he hopes that the standard of Essequibo’s cricket will also rise with an increase of qualified umpires including himself.