London: Former England spinner Monty Panesar has thrown his hat into the political arena by announcing his candidacy in the UK elections, representing George Galloway's fringe Workers Party of Britain.
The 42-year-old, who claimed 167 wickets in 50 Tests for England with his left-arm spin, will be on the ballot in Ealing Southall.
"I want to be the voice for the workers of this country," Panesar said in a column in 'The Telegraph'.
"My aspiration in politics is to one day become Prime Minister, where I would make Britain a safer and stronger nation. But the first job at hand is to represent the people of Ealing Southall."
Galloway, who returned to the House of Commons in March after winning the Rochdale by-election, following the demise of previous incumbent, Labour MP Sir Tony Lloyd, on Tuesday confirmed Panesar as a candidate.
"I'll present 200 of them outside Parliament this afternoon, including - you'll like this - Monty Panesar, the ace Indian cricketer, former England international cricketer, who will be our candidate in Southall," he said.
"Monty, of course, was a great left-arm spinner and so we could do with him."
Born in Luton, Bedfordshire to Sikh immigrant parents from India, Panesar, whose full name is Mudhsuden Singh Panesar, gained recognition as a cricketer when he was selected for the Nagpur Test in 2006. He was a member of the side that won the 2009 Ashes series and the 2012 India series.
Although he never formally announced his retirement, he took up a sports journalism course at St Mary's University, London after leaving cricket in 2016.
Published 30 April 2024, 14:21 IST