Eighty-seven-year-old former Guyana and West Indies captain, Rohan Bholalall Kanhai,, and 84-year-old veteran cricket commentator, Joesph ‘Reds’ Perriera, will, on Saturday November 18, receive honorary Doctorates from the University of Guyana (UG) Tain Campus, Berbice.
Among Reds’ most cherished memories is Commentating in the 1975World Cup Final, meeting Fidel Castro and being the special guest of Guyana’s President Dr Irfaan Ali for the CPL finals. This accolade will be among those too.

Reds overcame stammering and other daunting challenges, including a severe stroke in Australia in 1996, to become Guyana’s most illustrious sports commentator, as well as a household name in cricket broadcasting around the world.
Reds, the fifth of nine children, was born in Pomeroon, Essequibo and resides in St. Lucia with his Guyanese wife, Zandra.
Reds commentated on 151 Test matches and was also a popular voice on radio with Boxing, Football, Hockey, Table Tennis, Basketball, Netball and Motor Racing.
In 1959, two Inter-Colonial matches were being played in the then British Guiana at the same time, and two commentary teams were required.
“One match was at Bourda and the other at Rose Hall…I was interested in commentary and was called in by Rafiq Khan of Radio Demerara and Kenny Wishart. I joined Norman McLean and Claude Vieira for my first match,” said ‘Reds’.
“I began as a Freelancer with the Guyana Information Service (GIS) doing a weekly Magazine programme. Terry Holder and Cecil Griffith (both deceased) were there at that time,” Reds recounted.

In October 1968, the Guyana Broadcasting Service (GBS) was launched and ‘Reds’ joined Cecil ‘Bruiser’ Thomas in the Sports Department.
In 1971, he made his ‘Test’ debut at Bourda when India toured the West Indies.
He served as the President of the Guyana Basketball Association from 1969-1975 and attended three Central American Championships. He was Coach of the Santos Football Club and the National under-23 side in the 1960s and commentated on three World Title fights, including in January 1973, when George Foreman fought Joe Frazier. He also called the action for television on September 13, 1980 when Guyanese Patrick Ford battled Mexican Salvador Sanchez for the World Boxing Council featherweight title in Texas.
Reds served as Sports Adviser to former Minister of Sport, Shirley Field-Ridley, and as Chairman of the National Sports Council (NSC) in the 1970s before migrating to Barbados in 1980 when he got a lucrative contract with the Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). He spent five years with CBC and covered the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles.
Reds, a former President of the Guyana Football and Basketball Associations, moved to St. Lucia to establish and head the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) sports desk. He did the job for 12 years.

Freelancing for the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) and the Voice of Barbados (VOB), Reds formed the Reds Perreira Sports Foundation in December 2004 to assist sports in Guyana.
Naming the Media Centre at the Providence Stadium after him would be a fitting honor for him while he is still alive.
Meanwhile, Rohan Kanhai was born in the village of Port Mourant and represented the West Indies in 79 Test matches and was one of the best batsmen of the 1960s.
Kanhai was part of the West Indian team that won the inaugural 1975 Cricket World Cup.

Kanhai made his Test debut during the West Indies’ 1957 tour of England and kept wicket for his first three Tests, in addition to opening the batting.
Kanhai scored 6,227 runs at an average of 47.53, with his highest score of 256 coming against India in a Test at Calcutta.
He scored 29,250 runs from 421 First Class matches at an average of 54.66 with 86 tons and 129 fifties
In the 1975 World Cup final, when he was grey-haired and in his 40th year, his half-century set the platform for an explosive innings by Clive Lloyd.
Late in his career, he became West Indies captain, succeeding Gary Sobers. After Kanhai’s retirement, the West Indies called on him to be their first national cricket coach. Kanhai was Coach of the 1989 Guyana U-19 team before being assigned to the Test team.
In 2009, Kanhai was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.