Dominica cricket legend Irvine Shillingford passes away
The Dominican cricket community, as well as the entire Caribbean, is in sorrow following the death of cricketer Irving Shillingford. He was 78 years old at the time.
He was a talented batsman who made his first-class debut at the age of 16.
Dominica’s Prime Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit, released a statement of condolence, expressing his sadness at the death of Dominican cricket great Irving Shillingford.
“We have lost a true icon who provided immense delight to the cricket-loving Dominican nation,” he said. He represented everything that Dominican athletes of the West Indies’ most popular sport could achieve. He was the only Dominican to score a test century while playing for the West Indies Cricket Team in 1977/78. For an all-too-brief moment, he embodied the hopes and goals of countless Dominican cricketers who hoped to reach comparable success.
He never lost his passion for the game, leading his local club, Cavaliers, into his 60s and motivating young cricketers to pursue their ambitions. He was also a national selector for many years.
Irving Shillingford was a source of pride for all of us, and his name will live on in the minds and hearts of Dominicans forever. We shall continue to remember him and honor his legacy.
I send my profound sympathies to his family and everyone who mourn his demise on behalf of the Government and People of Dominica.”
Meanwhile, the Dominica Cricket Association issued a statement saying that the cricket community in Dominica and, by extension, the Caribbean mourns the death of Irvine Theodore Shillingford, a former West Indian cricketer from Dublanc.
The Dominica Cricket Association expresses its condolences to Irvine Shillingford’s family and all those affected by his death.
Irvine, a right-handed batter, will be noted for his four Tests and two One-Day Internationals in 1977 and 1978. He also appeared in 88 first-class games, 49 of which were for the Combined Islands, a side he represented from its formation in 1961 until its dissolution in 1981.
