Wickets 107

Cricket Canada's Monthly Online Magazine

     

CONTENTS 

Financial Prudence For Canada’s Professional Cricketers!

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Cricket Canada Pursuing The Development Of Robust Resources

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Miryam Khokhar: Canadian Women’s Cricket’s Rising Star

Manitoba’s Cosmos Cricket Club: Giving Back To Cricket For The Love Of The Game

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Canada’s Cricketing Lovebirds!

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Loyalist Club Hosts 6th Annual Snow Cricket Tournament

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Coach Rupert Stephenson Guiding Canada’s Women’s Cricketers

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Money Matters: Simple Math Can Change Your Life

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Colonial Group International Ltd Sponsors West Indies Cricket!

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ICC World Cup: Who’s Hot And Who’s Not!

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’  January 2019 TMac Enterprises 132 Mullen Drive Ajax, Ontario L1T 2A4

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Tony McWatt www.caribgraphic.com

CONTRIBUTORS Frederick Halley Tony McWatt Richa Prabhakar Ray Ramattan Ranjit Saini Phillip Spooner

PHOTOGRAPHY Lynette Balram

GRAPHIC DESIGN BlueFlower Media

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Cricket Canada's Monthly Online Magazine

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Cricket Canada Wickets is published monthly by TMac Enterprises for online distribution. All rights reserved.

Reproduction of this publication in whole or part should be with the Publisher's permissions only.

Cricket Canada has recently announced that it will be short listing a group of eighteen (18) players for annual full time contracts. All players offered contracts would have to reside in Toronto for continual training throughout the year.

The expected contract amount will average CDN $40,000 per annum. Players will also qualify for daily per diems as per the normal established rate while on tour for Cricket Canada, and during GT20 games plus any other related training tours out of Canada.

This is most welcome news for Canada’s senior men’s cricketers. In order to ensure that the players who do receive actual contracts don’t recklessly squander their newfound wealth however Cricketer Canada should perhaps also consider hosting a series of Financial Management Seminars for its professional cricketers.

As the acclaimed Wealth Management Guru, Keybase Financial’s Owner and CEO, Dax Sukhraj had recommended in his article entitled Financial Planning Prudence for Professional Athletes (Cricketers): “Most professional cricketers should have a financial plan. It will provide a general road map and a transpiring guide of how their money flows and where it goes!”

Sukhraj had further noted that the amount of playing time a young cricketer will have depends on many factors like skill level, where they play, as well as the kind of contracts they will be able to secure during you’re their form playing years. The pursuit of financial independence should therefore be revised many times as the unique lifestyle, income situation and residential circumstances of a professional athlete change, Sukhraj said.

“You will have to be cognisant of your salary income and have a cash management system to help you budget, spend, save and invest concurrently. In professional sports, your career isn’t going to be very long, perhaps eight to twelve years. You have to realize that you need to contrast that to someone working 30 to 40 years. You need to take those compressed working years and plan for it to last 40 to 50 years. Athletes will earn the most money early in their career. Instead of earning more as you age, it’s usually the reverse. This is known as the reverse earning curve, as professional athletes earn the most money at a younger age, when you have limited real-life experience to rely on when making financial decisions!”

Sukhraj has also suggested Canada’s contracted cricketers will have a life outside their professional sport. As such it will become vitally important for each individual to put aside meaningful investments for the transitional years ahead, when their respective careers are over. As such they should transition some of the earnings during their most productive years, and hence highest earning contract years, to some retirement investments for the future.

Prudent financial advice of a type that should now be made readily available for Canada’s professional cricketers.

 

The seven initiatives that should be implemented as a means of fulfilling the Strategic Plan’s Robust Resources objectives are as follows: 1) Standardize and operationalize ICC funding qualification and application process. 2) Develop infrastructure to support commercial events. 3) Standardize and operationalize Sports Canada and other grant funding qualification and application process. 4) Develop sponsorship revenue generation program, sponsor management program. 5) Develop yearly commercial event program. 6) Increase online revenues. 7) Review member contributions and fees.

This coming May will be the first year anniversary of Cricket Canada’s official adoption of its Strategic Plan. Now is therefore as good a time as any to review the progress that Cricket Canada has made

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Cricket Canada’s adopted Strategic Plan outlines six targeted core objectives that it should be seeking to fulfill in pursuit of its Vision for Canada “to be a leading cricket nation through growing popularity, building a sustainable organization and achieving international success!” At the very top of the chart, occupying prime space as one of the most essential of the six targeted core objectives, is the development of “Robust Resources!” According to the Strategic Plan such development would be manifested by successfully productive activity in three areas: a) developing a sustainable funding model b) the diversification of funding sources and c) the maximization of existing funding opportunities. Cricket Canada’s Strategic Plan also identifies seven strategic initiatives, which should be pursued as a means of fulfilling its Robust Resources objectives.

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tion supported by hordes of volunteers, including its President and his fellow Executive Board Members. The argument can therefore be made that unless and until Cricket Canada expands its professional staffing component, realistic implementation of infrastructural development to support commercial events will never quite be achieved.

Initiative number three, to standardize and operationalize Sports Canada and other grant funding qualification and application process, not unlike number one, is an internal administrative process.

There having been no public evidence to the contrary, one can therefore only assume that by now this initiative would have been successfully implemented.

towards the fulfillment of its Robust Resources objectives, at least from the standpoint of that which has become visible and made known to the public.

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The entries and qualifications of Canadian teams, from the Senior Men’s and Women’s levels through to the Juniors for various ICC staged events would suggest that Cricket Canada has been successful in the achievement of the first of the seven identified Robust Resources Strategic Initiatives. There is no evidence to suggest that ICC qualification and application processes have not been successfully standardized and operationalized.

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From all appearances the same cannot however be said about Cricket Canada’s implementation of the second Strategic Initiative. The only real “commercial event” that Canada has hosted within the past year has been the Global T20 Canada Tournament, the administration of which was almost wholly managed by the Mercury Group and its contracted employees. Although Cricket Canada did successfully stage its first ever CricketFest last summer, that could hardly be qualified as a “commercial event!”

As of now Cricket Canada’s organizational structure remains as a two person professional opera-

The existing evidence however does not in any way suggest that Cricket Canada has made any actual progress towards a meaningful implementation of Strategic Initiative number 4: Develop sponsorship revenue generation program, sponsor management program. Although there were some rumblings of a major sponsorship acquisition by Cricket Canada towards the end of 2018, to date nothing concrete has materialized and Canada’s national teams have remained bereft of a Corporate Sponsor.

The successful staging of last year’s Global T20 Canada tournament and the plans that are now being put in place for its continuation this year, would serve as a highly commendable achievement by Cricket Canada of its fifth Robust Resources Strategic Initiative: the targeted development of a yearly commercial event program. Last year’s highly successful inaugural CricketFest Tournament was also highly suggestive of its very real potential to become a second annual commercial event for Cricket Canada. For this to be achieved however, Cricket Canada will first and foremost have to pursue the addition of a qualified and competent sponsorship acquisition oriented individual to its professional staffing component.

For Cricket Canada to achieve the implementation of the sixth Robust Resources Strategic Initiative: increasing online revenues, its current website would have to be almost completely revamped.

There have been indications from Cricket Canada that this is indeed being pursued but as yet no actual progress, in terms of an improved website, has been revealed.

The last of the seven targeted Robust Resource Strategic Initiatives suggests a review of Cricket Canada’s member contributions and fees.

This is obviously a fairly straightforward internal administrative function, which by now would hopefully have been implemented.

Almost a year into its official adoption of its Strategic Plan, Cricket Canada’s report card for its achievement of the Plan’s Objectives and Strategic Initiatives would arguably reflect an overall C grade.

Four of the seven identified Strategic Initiatives numbers 1) Standardize and operationalize ICC funding qualification and application process; 3) Standardize and operationalize Sports Canada and other grant funding qualification and application process; 5) Develop yearly commercial event program and 7) Review member contributions and fees, can be viewed as having been successfully implemented. Very little publicly visible progress has however seemingly been made towards the implementation of the three remaining Strategic Initiatives: 2) Develop infrastructure to support

commercial events; 4) Develop sponsorship revenue generation program, sponsor management program and 6) Increase online revenues.

There’s still much left for Cricket Canada to do therefore as its seeks to fulfill its Strategic Plan development of Robust Resources. Hopefully this will be the year when it actually manages to do so to the benefit of the further development of Canadian Cricket!

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Miryam was playing to compete against the boys.

She was never introduced to any other women who played, so she played in the Toronto & District Cricket Association League (TDCA) among the boys.

When Miryam was around the age of 11, the TDCA introduced for the first time, a Women’s League.

In 2013, during a game against Tranzac, Mikaela Turik, the Canadian team captain at the time, introduced Miryam to George Coordinton and asked her to start coming to the national practices that were being run. Miryam also started practicing along with the boys at the Provincial HP Sessions during 2014 and continued doing so until last year.

 ’’ Miryam Khoker’s cricket career was essentially started sometime in 2004, when she was only four years old. Initially she was heavily inspired by her older brother who was either always in the nets with his coach or constantly playing cricket with their dad in the family home’s basement. Not surprisingly cricket kind of grew on Miryam.

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Miryam started going to practices, playing and learning. At first it was somewhat hard for her as she was always the only girl in the nets surrounded by much bigger boys. She was however, really blessed to have had a coach like Derek Perera. He always treated her just like any of his other players and if anything worked with her even harder. Derek continues to help Miryam grow not only as a cricketer, but as a person as well.

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Being a part of a club like Ontario Cricket Academy was relatively easy for Miryam to adjust to. It quickly became very familiar to her along with the appreciation that everyone there treats each other as family. For a while,

In 2015 Miryam participated in the Ontario Women’s first tour to Atlanta. A year later, in 2016, she toured England as a member of a joint North American team called CanAm playing along side Clare Taylor who had also played U19 cricket at Essex and Middlesex.

In 2017 Miryam was invited to attend a Philadel-

During the 2017 summer, Miryam was also recognized as the leading run scorer for the Scarborough Women’ League. In 2018 she was one of the four Canadians selected to go to Trinidad to play in

the Court Grand Slam Franchise Tournament.

During the Tournament, Miryam played for the Tecu Titans alongside West Indies professionals such as Brittney Cooper, Shakira Selman, Merissa Aguilleira and Deandra Dottin.

Miryam also captained a Select All Stars team that played against a visiting Secondary School Girls Cricket Team and received a Player Of The Match Award during the Mississauga Cricket Festival.

This past summer she also was recognized as GTA’s “athlete of the week” on CP24.

To finish off what was unquestionably, to date the brightest summer of her exciting cricketing career, Miryam was appointed as Vice Captain for the Ontario Reds team in the reintroduced Canadian National Women’s Championships. She was awarded the Player of the Match for the Final against Ontario Greens, which the Reds won handsomely.

Now serving as Captain for the Ontario Cricket Academy’s Senior Women’s Team and as an Assistant Coach for the Junior Girl’s Team, Miryam has recently received a Willow and Leather sponsorship. She is also currently taking part in the Canadian National Women’s Squad’s training for the ICC America’s Championship which will held this coming May. Miryam Khoker, Canadian Women’s cricket rising star indeed!

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phia hosted CanAm Cricket Camp where England’s national Women’s Team players, Suzie Bates and Charlotte Edwards, were members of the coaching staff. At the conclusion of the Camp, Miryam was recognized as its best batter!

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 1. City of Birth- Mississauga, Ontario 2. Favorite Childhood Memory- Road trips with my family 3. Childhood Ambition- To become a professional cricketer 4. Favorite School Subjects- English Literature 5. Favorite Book- The Great Gatsby & Hamlet 6. Favorite Movie- The Harry Potters & The Rocky Series 7. Top 5 Favorite TV Shows- One Tree Hill, The Vampire Diaries ,The Originals,The Last Airbender & Full House 8. Favorite FoodAnything from Taco Bell & Chicken Nuggets 9. Favorite Vacation SpotThe country side of England

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10. Greatest Young Adult Influence- My Mom. If I could grow up to be half the woman she is, I’ll be extremely happy

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11. Most Admired International Cricketer - BowlerStuart Broad

12. Most Admired International Cricketer – Batsman- Deandra Dottin 13. Most Embarrassing Cricket MomentAnytime I get run out 14. Most Memorable Cricket MomentPlaying alongside Deandra Dottin 15. Cricketing AmbitionMaking it to the Pro Leagues. Helping women’s cricket grow as much as I possibly can 16. Favorite Sport outside of CricketVolleyball 17. Hobbies Outside of Cricket- Writing/Making Music/Reading 18. Favorite Toronto Restaurant- I love chicken wings, so anywhere with good chicken wings 19. Music Most Listened ToI listen to a lot of underrated artists like Olivia O’Brien, Gavin Degraw, City in Colour etc.

20. Top 5 Bucket List ItemsPlay at Lords Cricket Ground; Publish a book ; Travel the world; Volunteer in a third world country and Live in the country side!

Manitoba’s Cosmos Cricket Club: Giving Back To Cricket For The Love Of Game

Cosmos Cricket Club now has five teams com-

peting in Manitoba’s Summer Leagues.

Cosmos Premier competes in the League’s Premier Division, Cosmos Lancers and KingZ are the Club’s representatives in Division 1, while Cosmos Spartans and its Academy team participate in Division 2.

Cosmos Cricket Club’s 2018 results were highly notable. Its Premier Division team placed first in the League Stage and as previously indicated, also emerged as Playoff

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Founded in 1978 Manitoba’s Cosmos Cricket Club won its 6th consecutive Premier Division Championship Title last year, almost as a celebration of its 40th anniversary as one of Canada’s oldest cricket clubs. In the forty years that have now passed since its 1978 formation, Cosmos Cricket Club has in fact won the Manitoba Provincial Championship title a record 19 times.

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As one of Canada’s oldest cricket clubs.

Cosmos’ growth over its forty-year existence has been impressive, particularly within the past decade. In 2008 the Club had just one team in the League, but by the following year had added a second with the formation of the Cosmos Lancers.

Even more growth followed in 2013, allowing the Club to enter a third team, Cosmos KingZ, to compete in the Manitoba Summer League.

Champions. In Division 1, Cosmos KingZ was first in the League Stage and Runner’s Up in the Playoffs. The Club’s other Division 1 team, Cosmos Lancers, placed third in the League Stage.

By 2017 Cosmos’ membership had grown enough for a fourth team, Cosmos Spartans. The Club also launched an outreach program at the University of Manitoba, for the U of M Bisons, which provides an opportunity for interested university students to have an avenue to play cricket.

In 2018, due to the success of its School Cricket program, the Cosmos Academy team was formed. Comprised of U19 Players its Academy team created a bit of history for the Cosmos Club. It is the very first and to date still the only club to have ever entered a team of U19 players into the MCA League.

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Cosmos Cricket Club provides equal opportunities for all of its teams to train and grow with many of the Club’s premier players serving as coaches to those in the lower divisions. This is just one of the Cosmos Cricket Club’s many amazing features, the demonstrated willingness of its senior players to freely give of themselves for the benefit of its younger cricketers.

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Through its 5 teams, Cosmos Cricket Club is now able to provide opportunity for players of all skill levels to participate in the game they love. This is very much in keeping with the Club’s Motto which is “For the Love of the Game. Giving Back to Cricket.”

Four years ago Cosmos Cricket Club’s Executive Board took the initiative to contact two of Manitoba’s Junior High Schools, with the idea to start indoor cricket programs for students at that level. They approached the schools, presented their idea and were successful in getting buy ins from the respective school Principals.

Each year since then Cosmos Cricket Club has attracted approximately 40 students to its Junior High Program, which is now being run in three schools. Competition between the three participating schools was started during the Program’s second year. The participating schools have been fully supportive of the Program and have even provided uniforms (shirts) for the kids to wear while playing.

In 2018 Cosmos Cricket Club managed to advance some of the High School players into 45 over League cricket by entering a team in the MCA’s Division 2. The team played 12 games, and although they were winless, the initiative allowed 18 kids to participate and gain further, highly valuable, competitive exposure as part of their ongoing development.

As Siloam Mission volunteers, the Cosmos Cricket Club members’ duties include: sorting and organizing clothing donations, as well as preparing and serving food for lunches and dinners to those who find themselves in the food line as clients. The program has been very successful. The Club’s members had embraced the initiative from the get go and have continued to do so. For every session they tend to get more members volunteering than are actually needed. As such it has become very much similar to a team selection process with first timers getting preference.

The parents of the young people who volunteer have openly expressed their support for this Program. They are thankful that cricket is also introducing their children to such a wonderful opportunity for giving. When volunteering the Cosmos members always wear their club shirts and hats. This allows some of the regulars at Siloam Mission to recognize the Cosmos members as belonging to a cricket club.

During the winter off-season, from November to April, Cosmos Cricket Club’s members now serve as Siloam Mission volunteers. Siloam Mission is a non-profit organization that provides food, clothing and temporary shelter to the homeless and those in need.

The Cosmos Club’s members volunteer in teams of 6-12 people on various occasions.

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Cosmos Cricket programs are 100% run by volunteers from within the Club. Players from all of its teams serve as coaches throughout the School’s Cricket Program, which now runs from Nov – June each year.

As a fulfillment of its objective to give back to the Community, six years ago Cosmos Cricket Club launched a volunteer Program. The primary intention of which was to inspire the Club’s younger members to get involved in the community.

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CRICKET CANADA’S LOVEBIRDS! celebrate Trevin’s roots. In January of 2018, they welcomed their beautiful baby girl, Annika.

Trevin and Monali now both coach juniors at their Cricket academy in Kitchener, Ontario. They also continue to play club cricket; Trevin for West Indian Cricket Club and Monali for Ontario Cricket Academy. Monali has also recently tried her hand at commentary at the Cricket Fest in Toronto this past summer. They say life is pretty busy with work, raising a baby, and owning a couple of with the help of family.

Cricket Canada’s love birds: Trevin Bastiampillai and Monali Patel have both played for Canada at the international level. While there are a several other international couples globally who share Cricket as their common sport, Trevin and Monali are the only couple to do so in Canada.

Trevin made his debut for the senior Canadian side in 2007 at the age of 21; prior to that, he represented Canada at the U-19 level from the age of 17. Monali also made her debut in 2007 for the Women’s side at the age of 18.

For the pair, it all started at winter training in 2008 are “pretty smooth” now as Trevin says, but they didn’t

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missed a step and Trevin tried to start a conversation by telling her she was doing the drill incorrectly. Monali was quick to defend herself and tell him she knew what she was doing and didn’t need his help. As most can imagine, Trevin was a little taken back, but with some help from past Canadian Players Sunil Dhaniram, Aftab Shamshudeen, and Abdul Samad, he was able to make a move again.

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The pair dated for 7 years and it was the night before Christmas that Trevin decided to go down on one knee and seal the deal in 2015. They got married in August ceremony to celebrate Monali’s roots, followed by a Catholic ceremony and reception back in Canada to

Trevin Bastiampillai Born:

Colombo, Sri Lanka

Debut: 2007 (age 21) Batting style:

Right-hand bat

Bowling style: Misc:

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Q&A With Monali & Trevin What’s your best cricketing memory?

TB: The opportunity to travel and meet people all over the world is something I will always cherish. Also, that ;) lol

in the America’s Championships for quite a few years,

What are each other’s best qualities?

Any future plans for your kids in the sport?

TB: She’s the most honest person you’ll come across.

She may get into a lot of trouble for it, but she keeps you in check. We also get along so well because of our family oriented upbringing and our common interests and goals in life.

TB: If Annika gets my talent and Monali’s temperament, she will go far in any sport. I’m not going to push crick et, but our backyard matches will be intense for sure.

MP: He’s quite calm and relaxed, which balances my not so relaxed lifestyle. He also is a fantastic father, something that really surprised me!

MP: As much as we both love Cricket, I would like Anni ka to try other sports and keep her options open. We both come from a Track and Field background but I

Monali Patel Born:

Nairobi, Kenya

Debut: 2007 (age 21) Batting style:

Right-hand bat

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Bowling style:

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Loyalist Club Hosts 6th Annual Snow Cricket Tournament!

The 6th Annual Loyalist Cricket Club Snow Cricket Tournament took place this past Saturday at the Loyalist Rugby Club. The Snow Cricket tournament was part of the City of Fredericton’s annual Frostival celebrations.

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Devansh Bavishi, President of the Loyalist Cricket Club, said that it was the most attended tournament in history with 10 teams and 70 players. “Every year participation has been

increasing. Word is getting out in the community,” Bavishi said. Approximately 70 percent players were completely new to the game of cricket, some only learning how to bat and bowl in the 10-minute tutorial before the action started. Other neighboring cricket clubs joined in the fun with Fredericton Cricket Club and the newly formed Kennebecasis Valley Cricket Club entering teams.

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The Loyalist Cricket Club brought friends to create other teams, and their club-mates on the Rugby side submitted four teams giving a great opportunity for the game to be introduced to so many at

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647-669-9320

finals was a great match between KV Dynamite and Fredericton Cricket Club, with the Dynamite finally coming out on top.

The Loyalist Cricket Club is hoping that the proceeds from the day will go towards enhancing their programs for youth cricket in the Fredericton area. The Fredericton Loyalist Cricket Club would like to thank the City of Fredericton and Frostival for the promotion of its Snow Cricket Tournament, all the clubs and players who came out to make the tournament a resounding success and an overall great day, their club mates at the Loyalist Rugby Club for providing the grounds and clubhouse for the tournament, and especially, a place to get warm.

The Loyalists would also like to thank as well everyone who helped out with umpiring, organizing, food prep, promotion and everything else leading up to and on the day of. They are already looking forward to next year!

once. The format for the snow cricket tournament is 6 a side for 6 overs. Every player on a team must bat and bowl so that everyone gets an opportunity to learn the whole game.

Who know maybe there may eve be a Canadian Snow Cricket Club Championships in the making some time soon, eh Cricket Canada? Go (Snow) Cricket!

The day started off with a big warm breakfast to fill people up for a chilly day of cricket in the snow. The pitches were in great shape, the snow was the perfect depth and consistency. However, the wind would played havoc most of the day blowing the stumps over which had to be held in position by large pieces of ice and snow. All of this just added to the experience of playing cricket in the snow.

In the end, the semi-finals came down to Draft Dodgers vs KV Dynamite and FCC vs Bangers and Smash, with the two more-experienced teams making it to the final. The

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Even with the wind, people had smiles on their faces, laughs and jokes were heard around the field and in the clubhouse all day.

The first bowl was at 10:00am and throughout the day 20 games of cricket were played.

A lunch consisting of delicious homemade paneer masala, dal, rice and naan was included in the teams’ registration and meant that all the players were full for the long day of cricket.

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Rupert Stephenson Guiding Canada’s Women’s Cricketers Cricket Canada has recently announced that ICC Level 2 Coach, Rupert Stephenson, will head the coaching contingent for the Canadian National Women’s team in its quest for World Cup 2020 qualification. Rue Stephenson has been involved in coaching for over five (5) years both in Canada and Jamaica.

As an accredited ICC coach and a member of Cricket Coaches Australia, Rue has extensive experience in both the technical and organizational aspects of the game. He was a trainer for the ICC World Cup 2007 event held in the West Indies and has used the knowledge garnered to establish academies here in Toronto. Known for his astute thinking, he ensures that the training experience is intense and that students acquire the requisite, knowledge, skills and ability to become successful at the game.

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Rue was also a member of the coaching staff at the inaugural ICC Americas Combine in Indianapolis in

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2015. Foremost among his impressive qualifications are ICC Level 2 Coach; Cricket Australia Level 2 Coach and ICC Level 2 Train The Trainer.

According to an InsideHalton.com article that was penned back in 2010, Rupert Stephenson had migrated to Oakville from the sunny shores of Jamaica in search of a new life. The online Sheridan College Human Resources student had no problem adjusting to his new life in Canada, but realized something was missing. He had grown up playing cricket with his friends and family for fun and competitively. He searched for a cricket team close to his new home, but couldn’t find one that suited his needs.

So Stephenson went to the local park and began practicing his skills by himself. “People started noticing me right away,” said Stephenson, director of the brand new Oakville Cricket Academy. “Several parents approached me and said they wanted their kids to be able to play cricket too. That’s how this whole idea was born. I want to teach the kids the techniques of the game and provide them with the equipment they need.”

At that time Stephenson’s cricket experiment was still in its early stages of development. The group initially had only 10 students, but with many more having expressed interest that number has increased significantly over the past few years.

Under Stephenson’s guidance the Oakville Cricket

Leagues for both youth and adults. All games and practices are played at Appleby College, which offers both indoor and outdoor facilities.

Stephenson has remained excited about teaching youth and other adults the modern way to play cricket. “Cricket is one of the fastest growing sports in North America,” he said. “The new formats of the game include 20/20 and Sixes cricket.”

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Academy offers a development program, which runs throughout the year for youth age 7-18. It also offers summer house

The new formats allow the game to be completed in a much shorter time period. Professional games can sometimes last up to two days. Stephenson knows that this is unrealistic for average people. The new game is also more marketable, according to the academy’s director. It allows for different styles of clothing to be worn, and the game can be played by anyone, anywhere. You don’t have to be a professional athlete to swing a cricket bat and have fun with some friends.

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Simple Math Can Change Your Life – The Power of Compounding A wise man once said, “The most powerful force in the universe is the power of compound interest”.

In this month’s article we will be discussing just that, The Power of Compounding.

What is the difference between simple interest and compound interest?

Simple interest is interest calculated on the initial principal amount such as on a loan, deposit, or investment. For example, you deposit $100 into a 5-year Guaranteed Investment Certificate (GIC) that pays a 3% annual simple rate of interest. Each year $3 of interest would accrue and be payable to you upon maturity in 5 years. This means a total of $15 of interest would be payable to you once the GIC matures. $100 + $3 + $3 + $3 + $3 + $3 = $115 Compound interest is interest calculated on the initial principal amount which also includes accumulated interest over the period. More simply put, it includes “interest on the interest”. For example, you deposit $100 into an investment that pays a fixed 3% compound interest. In this case, in the first year you would receive $3 interest but in the second year you receive interest both on the original deposit amount as well as the $3 interest that accrued in the first year. In year three you would receive interest on the original deposit amount as well as on the interest accrued in the previous two years.

The power of compounding is important because it has the power to change your life and give you a brighter future. The key element of compounding that makes it so powerful is ‘time’. The more time there is to compound, the more powerful it becomes. There is an exponential relationship to compounding that does not exist with simple interest. The previous examples in this article use a small $100 principal and a short period of only 5 years. But what if we increase the initial principal and extend the time horizon to give it more power?

While the simple interest in the graph above grows at a straight line, the compound interest line is getting steeper and steeper over time. This is because of the effects of compounding - “interest on the interest” – and its exponential relationship with time. At year 5 the difference is only a little more than $1,000. But by year 10 the compounded interest is almost $6,000 more. By year 25, the difference is more than $73,000!

Hopefully by now I’ve convinced you that the

$100 + $3 + $3.09 + $3.18 + $3.28 + $3.38 = $115.93

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As you can see from the examples above, 3% compound interest is a greater return than 3% simple interest. If we were to convert 3% simple interest into a compound interest rate it would only be equal to about 2.83% compound interest.

At this point, you are likely starting to feel like you are back in high school math class (everyone’s favourite class) learning arithmetic but it is very important to understand this simple math and the power of compounding.

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What makes it so powerful?

power of compounding is indeed a powerful force.

But why should this matter to you and how can it improve your life?

Why does it matter?

With enough time many things can come to pass: wounds can heal; life can grow; goals can be met.

Those from humble beginnings can become wealthy and your dreams can become your reality.

The more time you allow for the possibilities to manifest the easier it will be to realize them.

Something that seems modest today can become something greater in the future; if you allow it adequate time to grow Take for instance the case of these identical twins on their 18th birthday.

Neither is certain as to what they want their future to be; whom it will be with or what they will do. Neither twin has a high income but they both have some income. One decides to start saving for the future and starts investing $150 a month on their 18th birthday while the other decides to wait another 10 years until he has a better idea of what he wants to do with his life before he starts saving.

The twin who starts saving earlier only saves for 10 years due to some unforeseen circumstance and the second twin saves the same $150 every month, excluding those first 10 years, until they both retire after they turn 65 years old.

The table on the right shows what their ultimate investment results would be assuming a 7% compound rate of return over their working lives.

The twin who started saving later saved a total of $68,400. After factoring in the compounded interest, he finished with a total investment value of $320,454.

Even modest savings can grow to become something significant if given adequate time. As you can see from the example above, it can also save you a lot of money. Don’t let time pass you by or it will eventually become a headwind. Put the power of compounding to work for your benefit and let time be a tailwind to your financial destination.

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The twin that started saving earlier but stopped after 10 years only saved a total of $18,000. Miraculously, due to the power of compounding and the longer time invested, he has accumulated a total investment value of $335,585 despite saving almost a quarter as much as his identical twin.

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Colonial Group International Ltd Sponsors West Indies Cricket!

Colonial Group International Ltd. (CGI) has announced a major Global Partnership with Cricket West Indies (CWI) that “will benefit cricket across the region from communities and young families to professional cricketers”.

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Colonial is thrilled to be named the Title Sponsor/ Official Partner of the WINDIES ODI Home Series which was started in Barbados on February 20.

This Global Partnership also includes becoming

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the Title Sponsor of the CWI Super50 Tournament, enabling Colonial and CWI to positively impact the cricket communities within the Caribbean and also reaching worldwide.

CGI is a Bermuda-based holding company for the Colonial Group of Companies, which has commercial operations in Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, The Bahamas, the British Virgin Islands, Barbados and the Turks and Caicos Islands. The Group comprises independently incorporated companies in these jurisdictions offering property and casualty insurance, employee benefits for pensions and health, life assurance and personal investment products and has received an “A Excellent” rating from AM Best.

Colonial’s CEO, Naz Farrow said:

“The West Indies had a fantastic test series victory over England and we hope that leads to even greater things for cricket in the Caribbean. We believe that our partnership will help develop the

sport at the grassroots level and build a great future for cricket. Colonial is fully committed to the local communities it operates in and shares the core values of CWI; building happy, healthy active lifestyles for millions of people, whilst inspiring and uniting communities worldwide.”

Marlon Graham, VP of Brokerage & Broker Relationships, Caribbean for CGI, said:

“Coming as I do from Barbados and having played for the West Indies at under-19 level, I am absolutely delighted that Colonial is involved in this sponsoship. Colonial as a provider of Health Insurance in Barbados, is keen to support and encourage healthy active lifestyles, cricket as a sport can help achieve this. Hopefully this sponsorship will assist people to play more cricket than ever before. We want to help find the cricket stars of the future, men and women.”

cially fans of both the Super50 and the WINDIES. It also demonstrates that cricket remains a great platform to reach many fans and communities and we are truly excited to partner with Colonial whose ambitions to be #1 in their field mirror our ambitions to strengthen cricket in the West Indies for millions of people.”

Mr. Grave added:

“Cricket heroes inspire the next generation of children to play the game in their communities and this partnership will also aim to improve children’s health and activity through cricket.”

“We are delighted to welcome Colonial Group International as the title partner of the One Day International Series, the Super50 and also as the official insurance partner of Cricket West Indies. The breadth and depth of Colonial’s partnership with us will benefit cricket across the region from communities and young families to professional cricketers and espe-

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Johnny Grave, CEO of CWI said:

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 ’ Countdown To World Cup 2019, Who’s Hot Or Not! With less than 100 days to go before the start of the 2019 Cricket World Cup in England and Wales on May 30, AFP Sport looks at who will be hot or not at the showpiece event.

AFGHANISTAN

Afghanistan have made rapid strides since featuring in the 2015 World Cup for the first time but had to endure a nail-biting qualifying competition in Zimbabwe to make the 2019 edition.

But they are not to be under-rated. At the 2018 Asia Cup, they beat Sri Lanka and Bangladesh and tied against eventual champions India.

GAMECHANGER: Leg-spinner Rashid Khan will be the

trump card for Afghanistan. The 20-year-old from war-torn Nangarhar is a wicket-taking bowler — he became the fastest to reach 100 ODI wickets in 44 matches. Rashid can bowl in the power-play as well as in the death overs.

AUSTRALIA

The defending champions and five-time winners are the most successful country in the tournament’s history, beating New Zealand by seven wickets in the final on home turf in 2015. But they have struggled for form since the team was embroiled in a ball-tampering scandal that rocked the game last year.

They were hammered by England 9-1 across two series in 2018, and followed it up with series defeats over the home summer against South Africa (2-1) and India (2-1).

GAMECHANGER: Steve Smith and David Warner are being seen as their saviours. They are both eligible again in late March after their one-year bans over the ball-tampering affair expire and are widely expected to slot straight back into the side.

The expectations are high for the two star batsmen who between them have played 214 ODIs and scored 7 774 runs.

BANGLADESH

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Perennial underachievers Bangladesh will be looking to improve on their 2015 quarter-final finish after some heartening performances in the United Kingdom. They qualified for the semi-finals of the 2017 Champions Trophy from a group that also featured hosts England, Australia and New Zealand.

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In 2018, Bangladesh won 13 of their 20 ODI matches, behind only England and India in terms of the number of wins. The Tigers will rely on the experience of key players like Mashrafe Mortaza, Tamim Iqbal, Shakib Al Hasan and

Mushfiqur Rahim who are all expected to play their fourth 50-over World Cup. GAMECHANGER: At 35, Mashrafe is still the leader of Bangladesh’s pace attack, but left-arm quick Mustafizur Rahman can make a strong impact in what will be his maiden World Cup. Mustafizur, the only Bangladeshi to feature in ICC’s 2018 ODI team-of-the-year, with his lively pace and incisive swing can be handy in seaming English conditions. The country’s board is trying to protect the 23-year-old for the World Cup by denying him permission to join the lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL) in March-April.

ENGLAND

Have featured in every World Cup since the tournament was established in 1975 but have still to win it, with the last of their three losing appearances in the final back in 1992.

An embarrassing exit at the 2015 edition, culminating in a defeat by Bangladesh, saw England go out in the group stage for the third time in five World Cups.

Captained by former Ireland batsman Eoin Morgan, England have risen to the top of the 50-over rankings.

Home advantage, however, may not be that much help.

This will be the fifth time that England have staged the World Cup, their best performance on home turf coming when they were overpowered by the West Indies in the 1979 final.

champions who first lifted the trophy at Lord’s in 1983.

GAMECHANGER: If Kohli will be key to India’s chances in the 10-team tournament then new spin ace Kuldeep Yadav could lead the charge in the bowling department.

The 24-year-old Yadav claimed 45 wickets in 19 ODI matches last year with his left-arm wrist-spin proving to be a handful for opposition batsmen. Kohli meanwhile kept the runs going, averaging an astounding 133.55 in 14 ODIs in 2018.

NEW ZEALAND

The Blacks Caps hope to shed their tag as the World Cup’s nearly men and claim the title after making the semi-finals six times and the final once – in 2015 when they suffered a heavy loss to Australia.

While Kane Williamson has replaced Brendon McCullum as captain, the core of the team that powered New Zealand to the 2015 decider remains, although a recent strong run of form was marred somewhat by a 4-1 series loss to India in January.

GAMECHANGER: Speedster Lockie Ferguson adds genuine pace to New Zealand’s seam attack, regularly sending down 150 km/h thunderbolts and troubling batsmen with an array of bouncers and blistering yorkers.

Ferguson has added some much-needed consistency

GAMECHANGER: England have several proven match-winners in their side but in wicketkeeper-batsman Jos Buttler they have an outrageously gifted shotmaker capable of ‘scooping’ good length balls from fast bowlers over his head for boundaries. The 28-year-old has scored six ODI hundreds and boasts a superb strike rate of just under 117.

INDIA

India had a superb 2018 with ODI wins in South Africa (5-1), and West Indies (3-1) and the Asia Cup title in the UAE. England also bring back happy memories for the two-time World Cup

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Under Virat Kohli’s leadership, heavyweights India will enter the World Cup as favourites alongside England. The second-ranked one-day side in the world have been in fine form with recent series victories in Australia and New Zealand.

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to his game and the Black Caps will be looking for the 27-year-old to ramp up the aggression and give them an intimidation factor at his first World Cup.

SRI LANKA

PAKISTAN

With allegations of match-fixing and corruption plaguing Sri Lankan cricket, the 1996 World Cup champions are not a threat to top international sides despite their recent Test win in South Africa. The islanders crashed out of the 2015 edition after a big loss to South Africa in the quarter-finals and have since witnessed a decline in their cricketing fortunes.

Under Sarfraz Ahmed, Pakistan have some exciting talent — from Mohammad Amir to Usman Shinwari to Hasan Ali. If their vulnerable batting comes good they could repeat the exploits of Imran Khan who led the team to their only World Cup in Australia in 1992.

Sri Lanka hit a new low in 2017 after a visiting Zimbabwe team beat them 3-2 in a five-match ODI series and the island nation have not won a bi-lateral rubber in the last two years. Performance apart, Sri Lankan cricket has been at the centre of allegations including attempted match-fixing ahead of a Test against England last year. But their one-wicket win over South Africa in Durban this weekend will give them hope to cause a few upsets in the World Cup.

It’s certain that Pakistan will be unpredictable. At the Champions Trophy in England two years ago, they were routed by India by 124 runs in the opening match before thrashing their arch-rivals by a massive 180 runs in the final.

GAMECHANGER: Babar Azam, just 24, has been compared to India superstar Virat Kohli. Babar has an ODI average of over 51 and has hit eight centuries and 10 50s.

SOUTH AFRICA

Ever since losing on a bizarre rain rule in the semi-finals of their first World Cup campaign in 1992, South Africa have seemingly been jinxed in knock-out matches. They have only won one such match, a quarter-final in 2015, but have been beaten in four semi-finals and two quarter-finals, sometimes in circumstances that have been heartbreaking for their supporters.

The Proteas will go to the 2019 tournament with modest expectations, lacking the depth of all-rounders that made them a formidable force in the late 1990s and early 2000s and hit by the retirements of star batsman AB de Villiers and fast bowler Morne Morkel. They have won 12 and lost ten ODIs since the start of 2018.

GAMECHANGER: Old warhorse Lasith Malinga still remains Sri Lanka’s best bet in the bowling department and key to any chance of Sri Lanka making an impact in England and Wales. The 35-year-old paceman returned as the team’s best with seven wickets in their recent 3-0 loss in New Zealand. He was also captaining the side.

With 318 wickets in 213 matches since making his ODI debut in 2004, Malinga can still inspire a struggling Sri Lankan side with his experience and his ability to stifle runs in the death overs with his slinging yorkers.

WEST INDIES

Champions of the first two World Cups in 1975 and 1979, West Indies appear doomed to endure a tortuous tournament despite their recent Test series win over England on home ground. Failed to get past the quarter-finals in 2011 and 2015 and were forced to qualify for 2019.

GAMECHANGER: Shimron Hetmeyer, the precocious 22 year old former West Indies World Cup winning Captain has been described by non-other than the greatest cricketer ever, Sir Garfied as “the next great West Indies

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GAMECHANGER: Hard-hitting left-hander David Miller is a powerful batsman capable of changing the course of a match and an outstanding fielder. He was man-of-the-series in a recent T20 series win against Pakistan.

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Breakout star could be Lungi Ngidi, a 22-year-old fast bowler with the physique of a heavyweight boxer. He has missed most of the current season with a knee injury but is back and bowling quickly in franchise cricket.

batsman. In just 22 ODI matches, Hetmyer has already struck four centuries and two half-centuries with a healthy average of 42.18 and a strike rate of 109.9.

@cocopalmstlucia