WEB CHUTNEY

The sultan of swing was honored by the University of Central Lancashire with an honorary fellowship for his contribution to cricket.

The ex-Lancashire fast bowler accepted the award in front of a packed crowd at Preston’s Guild Hall.

The ceremony was broadcast live on the internet.

While addressing the crowd at the graduation ceremony Akram said that:

“It’s a massive honour and a privilege for me to receive this Honorary Fellowship,” he said.

“I never thought I would be wearing academic robes so to get this award from such a fantastic University is absolutely overwhelming.

“I love Lancashire, I enjoyed playing for Lancashire, I still have a house here, I come back to visit my friends and everyone is so friendly.

“The people are so hard-working and that is what I learned from my time playing here, you have to work hard to achieve success.”

Saurav Gangulay was the last Asian player to receive an honorary fellowship in Lancashire in 2009.