Veteran cricket umpire, administrator Vish Jadunauth passes on

Veteran cricket umpire and administrator Vish Jadunauth passed away Saturday morning at age 60 after developing a lung infection.

Jadunauth was the Chief Financial Officer of the Scarborough Cricket Association (SCA) and held a Level Four umpiring certificate affiliated with both West Indies Cricket Umpires’ Association and Canada Cricket Umpire Association (CCUA).
SCA President Shiv Persaud stated that he was still “shocked” at the sudden demise of Jadunauth, who had been around the cricketing fraternity in Ontario and, by extension, Canada for the past two consecutive decades.
According to Persaud, Jadunauth was one of the live wires, always performing his duties with great professionalism and character.
“We at SCA (are) definitely saddened with his passing; he left a tremendous void now; he was a great individual and his contribution and service to cricket in Ontario was also tremendous,” he related.
Persaud noted that Jadunauth loved the game immensely and supported youth and female cricket; at the time of his death, Jadunauth was Cricket Ontario Junior Coordinator.
“Cricket has definitely lost a great man; he loved the game passionately and would have always worked tirelessly to get things done, both on and off the field; certainly, a very sad day for cricket in Canada,” Persaud declared.
Jadunauth, who was born in Mahaicony, Guyana, leaves to mourn his wife, a brother, and two sisters.
Meanwhile, former Ontario Softball Cricket League (OSCL) President Albert Ramcharran said he was still in disbelief over the death of his former executive and ‘buddy friend’. Ramcharran said that Jadunauth was an outstanding individual during his time at the OSCL and gave 100 per cent commitment to his work in various capacities. Jadunauth served as a treasurer and statistician, and was part of the formation of OSCL in 1996.
“This is a massive blow when it comes to softball and hardball cricket; he was a wonderful friend and always willing to serve the game in any way. He will definitely be missed,” Ramcharran stated.
Jadunauth had served as the Treasurer for CCUA and Ramcharran –the current President – said the umpiring fraternity was also in shock over his passing.
According to reports, Jadunauth suffered from respiratory issues over the past several weeks and was hospitalised at Centenary in Scarborough, Toronto where he was in the Intensive Care Unit ICU).
CCUA Secretary Azad Khan expressed his condolences to Jadunauth’s family and loved ones. Khan stated that Jadunauth was also a cricket scorer and what he had done for cricket certainly epitomised profound love for the sport. He noted that Jadunauth’s achievements as an umpire also spoke volumes.
“Yes, when was cricket matches and umpiring, you could have counted on his availability; we lost a good umpire; his achievement showed that he was a terrific human and may the Almighty bless his soul,” Khan stated.
Notably, Jadunauth was also the President of Kaieteur International Sports Club, a club that won a championship recently in the SCA tournament.