Wickets Vol 1 Issue 10 by Caribbean Graphic

Cricket Canada's Monthly Online Magazine

Vol. 1 Issue 10

Arslan Khan: A Bright Future Beckons   

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Cricket Canada’s President Ranjit Saini and his Caribbean counterpart Ricky Skerritt recently met in Antigua to discuss matters of mutual interest. The official report that was released by Cricket West Indies immediately following the meeting, indicated that the two Presidents had agreed to forge even closer ties between their respective organizations than had existed before.

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

If that lofty objective does in fact materialize, it will only be to the joint benefit of cricket both here in Canada and also back in the Caribbean. It will also be building on the noteworthy achievements that were accomplished between Cricket Canada’s President Saini and Ricky Skerritt’s Cricket West Indies Presidential predecessor, the enigmatic Dave Cameron, during 2018.

CONTRIBUTORS Colin Benjamin Frederick Halley Tony McWatt Derek Perera Richa Prabhakar

As a result of the Saini-Cameron close relationship, 2018 arguably witnessed a greater level of Canada-West Indies cricket participation than has ever occurred before. West Indies teams participated fully in both the Global T20 Canada’s Inaugural Season, as well as the Cricket Canada hosted CricketFest. On the flip side the Canadian Men’s Senior Team also participated in the Round Robin stage of Cricket West Indies 2018 Regional Super 50’s Championships that were held in Trinidad & Tobago.

PHOTOGRAPHY Lynette Balram

GRAPHIC DESIGN BlueFlower Media

At the tail end of that relationship there was also the Canadian Women’s participation as a No Age Restrictions Guest team in the recently concluded Cricket West Indies U19 T20 Championships. Even more recently, although perhaps far less related to any Presidential influences, Canada’s Nitish Kumar was drafted as a member of the St Lucia Stars for the forthcoming Caribbean Premier League 2019 Season.

Cricket Canada's Monthly Online Magazine

Vol. 1 Issue 10

Arslan Khan: A Bright Future Beckons

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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.

CONTENTS 6

Arslan Khan On Track To A Bright Canadian Cricket Future

Canadian Women Fall Short In ICC Qualification Quest

10 13 17 18 20

Ontario Cricket Academy Shaping Bright Futures

Canada’s Namibia Misadventure

What’s Next: The Road To 2023

Halifax Cricket League Adopts Independent Club Structure Cricket Canada Elects New Directors

Cricket Canada, Cricket West Indies Ties To Be Strengthened

Kensington Oval Send Off For Seymour Nurse

Ricky Skerritt Unplugged: Part II

With so much already having been accomplished the stated intention by the two Presidents, Messrs Saini and Skerritt“ to generate a new and expanded partnership in the forthcoming months, that will see more collaboration and participation of players and administrators in cricket, at CWI and Cricket Canada events,” is extremely encouraging. It will again, if manifested, only be to the greater good of cricket in both locations.

Players, administrators, officials fans and followers of cricket, both in Canada and the Caribbean, will now wait with keen interest, if not bated breath, to see just how this new and expanded partnership will materialize within the forthcoming months. If it does in fact prove to be an improvement on all that has already been accomplished, it will indeed harbor even closer ties between Canada and West Indies cricket to the benefit of both parties.

Barbados Tridents Announce Jason Holder As 2019 Marquee Player

Nitish Kumar Drafted For St Lucia Stars For CPL 2019

Let the games continue!

West Indies Women Off To England, Ireland Reds At 80: Looking Back!

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Presidential Meeting Harbors Closer Ties For Canada And West Indies

Born April 16 1999 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada’s Arslan Sher Khan has made an impressive rise up the batting rankings in both Canadian Youth Cricket and the ICC U19 World Cup levels within the past 5 years. Until he turned 20 in April of this year, he was ranked as one of Canada’s top U19 players. In fact, with 427 runs in 12 innings with an average of 47.23, Arslan Khan still holds the record as Canada’s highest ever run scorer in U19 World Cup history. That outstanding achievement occurred as result of Arslan’s outstanding performances in successive ICC U19 World Cups; the 2016 Bangladesh hosted Championships along with the 2018 Tournament that was held in New Zealand. Arslan was actually captain of the Canadian U19 Team at the New Zealand hosted ICC 2018 U19 World Cup. Canada secured victories over Namibia and Papua New Guinea before eventually falling to the West Indies in the Plate 2 semi-final. Prior to the World Cup the Arslan led Canadian U19’s had also toured Australia for a training camp and warm up matches. Arslan Khan started playing cricket at the age of 11. His obvious talents quickly led to his selection as a national player to represent Canada in the Bermuda hosted 2014 ICC Americas U17 Tournament. Arlslan’s highest score during the Tournament was a belligerent 81 against Bermuda. His aggressive batting during that innings earned him the title of “Little Dominator” as was bestowed by Bermuda’s national newspaper.

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Later that year ArsIan was also selected as 1 of the 5 Canadian players that represented ICC Americas for the 2014 Caribbean Premier League try-outs. In 2015, he was selected to represent Canada once again in the ICC Americas U19 Cricket World Cup Qualifier, which was held in Bermuda.

Arslan’s highest score of 94 against Bermuda, earned him Player of the Match honours and contributed to his impressive 47.00 Tournament average, earning him further Bermuda media accolades as “Canada’s brick wall!” Canada

remained undefeated and thereby qualified for the 2016 ICC U19 Cricket World Cup. With an aggregate of 181 runs and an impressive 45.25 average, Arslan again emerged as Canada’s the highest run scorer during the Bangladesh hosted ICC 2016 U19 World Cup. Arslan was also a member of the Canadian squad, which participated in the West Indies U19 Regional Championship. His highest score was 43 against Barbados. He also earned the praise of the former West Indies fast bowling legend Courtney Walsh, who complemented him on his batting technique. Prior to the West Indies Regional Championship, Arslan had captained the Ontario U16 Team in National U17 (Canada Cup) Tournament in Winnipeg. Under his astute leadership Ontario swept the tournament and easily won the championship. Arslan led from the front, His highest score was 155* and he was awarded the Man of the Tournament trophy. In 2016 Arslan was Captain of the Canada Cup winning U17

Up Close with Arslan Khan 1. City of Birth- Toronto 2. Favorite Childhood memory- Watching my first cricket game Ind vs. Pak at home 3. Childhood Ambition- To become like Sachin Tendulkar

During 2017 the Canadian U19 team played in ICC Americas World Cup Qualifier in Toronto. Canada won and Arslan was named both Man of the Match of the final of ICC as well as Man of the Tournament. Later that year the Canadian U19 team participated in the West Indies U19 Regional Championships that were held in St. Kitts. Arslan was Canada’s second highest run scorer with his highest score being 52 against Barbados.

4. Favorite School Subjects- English, P.E. and Biology

As previously mentioned Arslan was Captain of the Canadian U19 team for a pre-tour to Australia, and continued on to skipper Canada’s 2018 ICC U19 World Cup team in New Zealand. Arslan was Canada’s 2nd highest run scorer in the 2018 ICC U19 World Cup with an aggregate of 246 and an average of 49.2. Canada finished as the number 1 Associate team and in front of a full ICC Member, Ireland.

9. Favorite Vacation Spot- Barbados

5. Favorite Book- Kite Runner 6. Favorite Movie- 3 Idiots 7. Top 3 Favorite TV Shows- Game of Thrones, Prison Break, Cricket Fever: Mumbai Indians 8. Favorite Food- Chicken biryani

10. Greatest Young Adult InfluenceKawhi Leonard 11. Most Admired International Cricketer: Bowler- Imran Khan

12. Most Admired International Cricketer: Batsman- Brian Lara 13. Most Embarrassing Cricket Moment- I dove on the boundary to stop the ball and my pants came off! 14. Most Memorable Cricket MomentScoring my first Hundred 15. Cricketing Ambition- To play the highest level I get an opportunity in 16. Favorite Sport outside of CricketBasketball 17. Hobbies Outside of CricketReading, biking, any sports activity 18. Favorite Toronto RestaurantWatan Pizza & Grill 19. Music Most Listened ToRap, RnB, Hip Hop 20. Top 3 Bucket List Items- Sky diving, bungee jumping, deep sea diving,

Arslan Khan’s development as an outstanding Canadian cricketer has continued on its meteoric rise this past year. He recently completed a very useful stint in Australia with the Stoneyford Colac Heralds. As a 19-year-old Canadian import Arslan took the Colac District Cricket Association by storm since joining Stoneyford, following advice from good mate and former Maroon Caps cricketer Farhan Malik to spend a summer in Australia. Khan played a key role in Stoneyford’s season dominance. His performance in the Maroon Caps’ final-round win over Birregurra lifted him to the top of the standings to win the Colac Herald’s KFC CricketStar competition, based on individual statistics from the 2018-19 season. The all-rounder finished the home-and-away season with 429 runs at an average of 35.8, 26 wickets and seven catches to total 789 CricketStar points, finishing ahead of Warrion import Charlie Barriball, 774, and Stoneyford teammate and past winner Levi Dare, 745. Based on the seemingly star bound trajectory of his cricket career to date it now shouldn’t be much longer before Arlsan Khan is invited to don national colours as a Canadian senior team all-rounder.

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Arslan Khan On Track To A Very Bright Canadian Cricket Future!

Ontario team. He scored a century in Ontario’s match against the Rest of the Provinces (ROP). He also captained the Canadian U-17 Team in Houston where they emerged undefeated by winning all four of their matches played. Arslan was yet again Canada’s leading run scorer with a century against Bermuda, and a fifty against USA.

Canadian Women Fall Short In ICC Qualification Quest

Bhaskar 30 (19) and Onika Wallerson 23 (44) were the top scores. For Canada Saniyah Zia claimed 3/22 (4). Canada’s quest for a pride salvaging victory fell short by 35 runs as they only managed to reach 81/6 in their 20 overs. Saniyah Zia followed her impressive bowling by scoring 15*(20) but the rest of the Canadian batting was stymied by Lisa Ramjit’s outstanding bowling. Ramjit took 3/11 (4) to lead the US to victory. Summarized Scores: 1st T20, May 17, 2019 Canada Women 66/6 (20) USA Women 67/0 (10) USA won by 10 wickets 2nd T20. May 18, 2019 USA Women 113/6 (20) Canada Women 76 (18.2) USA won by 37 runs 3rd T20 May 19, 2019 USA Women 116/6 (20) Canada Women 81/6 (20) USA won by 35 runs

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In the 1st T20 Qualifier played at the Central Broward Regional Park in Lauderhill, Florida, on May 17 , Canada Women batting first, having been sent in by their US hosts, could only manage 66/6 (20 Ovrs). Kamna Mirchandani 21 was the Canadians top scorer while Lisa Ramjit took 2/5 (4) bowling for the US.

Set a paltry 67 for victory the US Women, led by Erica Rendler’s 47 easily reached their target off just 10 0vers without losing any wickets.

In the 2nd T20, played on May 18 at the Central Broward Regional Park, Canada won the toss and sent their US opponents in. Sindhu Sriharsha 38 (30), Sugetha Chandhrasekar 32 (49) and Shebani Bhaskar 22* (21) helped the US reach 113/6 off their 20 allocated overs. Bowling for Canada Mahwish Khan 2/11 (4) had the best figures. Set a victory target of 114 at a required run rate of 5.7 runs per over, the Canadians were dismissed for 76 off 18.2 overs. Chuntell Martins’ 20 (17) was the only score of note for the Canadians. For the US Uzma Iftikhar claimed 4/19 (4), while Claudine Beckford chipped in with 2/1 (3). With the Series already lost and their ICC Qualification hopes having vanished, the Canadians were only slightly less woeful in the May 19 dead rubber 3rd T20. The USA won the toss and batted themselves to 116/6 off their 20 overs. Sindhu Shriharsha 42*(33) , Shebani

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The Canadian Women’s cricketers quest to qualify for the both ICC’s T20 and 50 Over World Cups 2020 ended in absolute dismay as they were convincingly defeated in each and every one of the games played as part of their May 17-19 three match Americas Region Qualifiers Series against their US opponents. The US won all three matches by convincing margins of 10 wickets in the 1st T20, 38 runs in the 2nd T20 and 37 runs in the 3rd T20.

Based in Mississauga, the Ontario Cricket Academy program was founded in 2003 by Derek Perera. The Academy’s program became the flagship of the Ontario Cricket Development Organization. By 2004, the OCA had become the very first cricket Academy in North America to run programs in a dedicated indoor facility for the purpose of training players throughout the year.

National U-16 team in 2010, which is an opportunity seldom made available to touring Academy sides. In March 2011 the OCA created history as the first North American club or Academy to tour Sri Lanka. The tour created a lot of interest from the local press, especially since the OCA was welcomed by Sri Lanka Cricket. Again, the OCA was awarded matches against national representative sides at international cricket stadiums, usually only reserved for national teams.

The OCA is now recognized globally as the leading cricket Academy in North America. In the last 16 years, the Academy has produced many of the leading young players for Canada’s national team including the country’s first ever professional player Nikhil Dutta, and numerous U19 World Cup players like former captain Abraash Khan and Akash Gill. Many more players who have developed and learned all their cricket at OCA are now moving up the ranks to play international cricket. This is no more apparent than in the current national U19 squad where 5 out of 20 players are from OCA. The Academy’s strength is in the development of players through the highest standard of coaching and programs. Since the early days, the Academy has continued to move from “strength to strength”, providing world class training programs, leagues and tournaments for its players. OCA’s focus and aim is to provide the best coaching and playing opportunities, and as such, over the years many international and first class coaches have visited the Academy for coaching camps, including current IPL fast bowling coach Steffan Jones, Robin Singh (India Fielding Coach), Sanath Jayasuriya, Ian Frazier and Ashok Malhotra (former India Test player) amongst others.

Ontario Cricket Academy Shaping Bright Futures After the impressing on the first tour of 2008, the OCA was awarded a match against the Trinidad and Tobago

All of the OCA’s top performing players have and still go for One on One Coaching sessions with Coaches within

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dedicated coaching staff led by Derek Perera himself. The coaching staff is comprised of coaches with excellent cricketing backgrounds and areas of specialization. In addition to coaching and grooming players locally, the OCA has undertaken 14 international tours for youth age group teams. The club has toured West Indies, Sri Lanka, UAE and the USA on several occasions with future plans to go to many other countries.

As an organization, the OCA’s adopted corporate Mission is to provide the highest standard of coaching and programs for all age, a safe and healthy environment, conducive to development, the best playing opportunities for its players as well as assistance and guidance for players to help them achieve their goals. The OCA’s impressive cadre of five coaches, Derek Perera, Davy Jacobs, Sunil Khandor, Tribhawan Jagessar, Gary Grewal and Vishan Fernando have been instrumental in fulfilling the organization’s Mission.

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OCA’s true strength however is in its highly qualified and

As the OCA has grown in recognition around the world, many partnerships with overseas cricket boards and Academies have been formed, creating opportunities for players to play and experience cricket in different parts of the world. One such partnership is between OCA and Wanganui Cricket in New Zealand where for the last 3 years OCA has sent players for off-season training and matches.

the current cadre. The OCA’s underlying philosophy which governs such Sessions is simply that the more time cricketers spend practicing their craft the more proficient they will be at it. As such the flip side also applies in that without expert guidance, coaching and technical skill correction – players could actually be perfecting their mistakes. The OCA’s world-class coaches help guide their charges forward on their respective paths to success. Towards that end the OCA has hosted a slew of international coaches over the years. Most recently, for what will actually be his third visit to Toronto, the current Indian Premier League (IPL) Rajasthan Royals Fast Bowling Coach Steffan Jones, will be joined by the power hitting guru Julian Wood, who has worked with some of the world’s best players. The OCA’s 2019 Pro Cricket Camps are really and truly a once in a lifetime opportunity for aspiring professional cricketers to take their game to the next level. Anyone who aspires to play professional cricket needs to be prepared by the best in the world. As such the Camps will be offered in two distinct formats.

Canada’s Namibia Misadventure Canada’s very high hopes of regaining ICC Official One Day International (ODI) status were dashed by the National Men’s team disappointing performances in the Namibia hosted Division Two Qualification Tournament. Canada eventually finished fifth, failing by just four runs, on aggregate run rate to a fourth place finish that would have secured the coveted ODI status. Wickets Publisher Tony McWatt recently caught up with Canada’s Red Army Team Captain Davy Jacobs (DJ) to ask him about his overall views on the Namibia experience; What was your assessment of the selected Squad?

Did you think that all the required departments: Seam, spin, openers, batters, all-rounders were adequately covered? DJ: Going into the tournament, yes. In terms

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DJ: The Squad looked good throughout the preparation tours, and going into the tournament. The guys put in solid performances in Sri Lanka and South Africa, and the coach worked out a solid blueprint for the team.

that cemented his position there.

the event that PNG might win against Oman?

scored per over.

Another one I heard was that I am an opener. I opened in the Champion’s League and IPL, and that was T20 cricket. Besides that, I opened in first class cricket when I wasn’t keeping wicket. I have always been a finisher, batting in the middle order in white ball cricket (50 over and T20).

DJ:Yes, for sure. Even without a win, with a steady NRR, and other results going our way, we could still make the top 4. So we were aware of that, but we wanted to win the game, and try ensure it’s still in our hands.

DJ: In any game, you’ll always take more runs, if it was possible. We were 4/2, and came back to beat USA by 40 runs. That’s a big win, so it’s unrealistic trying to break down this particular game for answers and/or solutions.

We wanted to bowl first, to also give us an opportunity to have a go at the target, within a certain number of overs, if needed, depending on what was going on in the other two games.

I still look back at the first three games, especially the first one against Hong Kong. It should never have come to NRR, even with Oman’s 70 all out against PNG. We let ourselves down with our fitness and fielding, earlier in the tournament, simple as that.

So, I do understand people’s thoughts and opinions on this particular subject, because it is hard to understand things without all the information. What was your assessment of the pre-competition Camps in Sri Lanka and South Africa? Comments have been made that they were too rigorous and as result players were tired and jaded going into Canada’s first three matches!

Some fans had suggested that the batting was imbalanced with too many, eight, natural openers having been selected to fulfill middle order roles! How do you respond to that? DJ: I definitely welcome the interest and questions from fans, it shows the support and following we have in Canada, and it is appreciated. In terms of your question.. Thomas, Dhaliwal and Gunasekera were picked as our three openers, or the top 3, for that matter, which is sometimes the same thing. A number 3 can at times walk in second ball of the game. Thomas missed the first two games through injury, so we had to make other plans.

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Other players were for some reason viewed as openers as well, but that is inaccurate. Hiral, for example, opened the batting 8 years ago, so people assumed he was picked as an opener, whereas he was in fact brought into the team as a spinner.

The coach was also looking for a left-hander in the middle order, and Bhavindu scored heavily batting at number 5 in Sri Lanka, including a hundred off 90 balls. So

Sri Lanka was good, we had the opportunity to train every day, and played 7 or 8 games. In South Africa, we had world-class facilities. in Potchefstroom, and we played twice against their first class team (North West Dragons), and one game against Afghanistan.

Namibia was smashing Hong Kong, so everything looked fine there. But then some strange things started happening in the other game, and PNG rolled Oman for about 70. In order to have a higher NRR than PNG, it then meant that we needed to restrict USA to 212. We received this information when USA were about 145/3. We knew we were going to win the game, but this new scenario was almost impossible. We were up for the challenge though, barely put a foot wrong, and managed to get them 9 down, one over to go, and two runs to play with. They hit a ball past backward point, got to 215, and that was it. Was there any stage of the Canadian innings against the US where you felt more runs could have been

Have you second-guessed any of the bowling change decisions you made in the match against the US? DJ:Nothing that I can think of, to be honest. We should’ve scored more runs in those first three games, taken more wickets, and held onto our catches. But in this game against USA, no, there’s nothing there. They were about 145/3, and ended with 215/9 in 50 overs, Canada winning by 40 runs. That’s an incredible performance, under massive pressure. Is there anything you might have done differently in hindsight? DJ: Hindsight is a beautiful thing. Looking back, after everything I have seen, and all the data and information gathered...fitness and fielding. That’s what I would look to improve.

What went wrong in the initial three matches particularly in the opener against Hong Kong? DJ: In Game 1 against Hong Kong, we put up 222/8 after batting first. Slow pitch, slow outfield, and it was an above par score for those conditions on that day. Unfortunately we got off to a slow start with the ball. We struggled to get breakthroughs, so they got off to a flyer, kept the momentum, and we couldn’t defend a good score. The biggest problem during this game, and the tournament for that matter - our fitness and fielding, especially our catching. These areas contributed to most of our struggles in the first three games. In the final round robin match against the US was there any pre March team discussion about needing to get the overall run rate up as much as possible in

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of spin - two left arm spinners, off spinner, and a mystery spinner. Fast bowlers - three of them, of which one was a lefty. All rounders - all the spinners can bat, Dhaliwal does both, and a guy like Heyliger can hit it as well.

DJ: It was tough for sure, but very thorough. The Institute of Sport (IOS) team took over when we landed in Sri Lanka, and they did a wonderful job.

We lost the toss and batted first, and were soon 4/2. We recovered brilliantly, and got to a winning total, 254.

If you have that mindset and you can control your emotions, it means you can deal with pressure. And if you can deal with pressure, it means that you can perform under pressure, when it matters. So you see, it all comes back to fitness. What were the overall fundamental reasons for Canada’s failure to secure ODI Qualification. DJ: In my opinion 1) Fitness and fielding (especially catching), and 2) The teams who did well, got multiple breakthroughs early on. We struggled in this department. But in saying that, again, loose fielding and bad catching contributed to this problem. What needs to be changed going forward to ensure better success? DJ: In terms of putting in the work, and I am referring to skills... that is there. The guys work very hard, they put in the hours, the hunger is there. Thing is, we need to focus on our fitness and fielding. That’s where the big difference comes in. Having had the Namibia experience how do you now feel about the future of Canadian cricket and the road ahead?

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DJ: We have the T20 qualifiers coming up, so that is massive. It’s a different format, so a different approach is needed.

I am very optimistic about Canadian Cricket. Two years go by very quickly, so we will therefore have another chance to challenge for ODI status, and the next World Cup. What would you like to see happen most within the next 6 months to a year?

DJ: We need to learn from our mistakes, and show improvements, faster. The biggest issue is fitness and

fielding. If we sort out those two departments, our cricket can go to the next level very quickly. I have also come to learn that people tend to turn around and point fingers at the organization, at “the system”. This baffles me. This “system” that people and players blame for Canada’s challenges and struggles, it does not bat, bowl or field for you. You are the one with the ball in your hand. You are the one walking out to bat. Not the President, not the Board Members or Treasurer, not the Manager, or the cold Canadian winters. It’s all on you, the player. So if you have a career average of 13, how can you blame “the system”? It’s very strange, and an amateurish mindset. Don’t just sit with your hands open, wanting something for nothing. Focus on your game. Talk less, work hard, train more, get fit, work on your fielding, be the best version of yourself, try to be the best you can be, every single day. Contribute to society, lend a hand, make a difference. That is what professional cricketers do, consistently, day in and day out, week after week, year after year. That’s what it takes to perform under pressure, and at a high level. It’s not easy. It takes a lot of guts, discipline and sacrifice, and that is why everyone does not make it to the pro level. But it is worth it, that’s for sure. There will come a time when our hard work will pay off, our stars will align, and we will get back up where we belong. In the meantime, we can only put in the work, keep things simple, and keep our focus.

Long Road Ahead For Canada Towards The 2023 ICC World Cup! Having fallen agonizingly short of regaining ICC ODI status and League 2 qualification as a result of its fifth place finish at the recent Namibia hosted Division 2 Championships, Canada now faces an arduous road ahead in its quest of ICC 2023 World Cup participation. The preceding charts outline the process Canada will now have to follow if it hopes to get to India in 2013. Canada will first have to play against the likes of Hong Kong, Kenya, Uganda, Denmark, Singapore, Jersey, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Bermuda, Qatar and Italy and emerge among the top two countries of the Challenge League. Assuming it can cross that initial hurdle, Canada’s next step will be the Play Offs against Nepal, Scotland, UAE, Papua New Guinea, Oman, Namibia and the US. The top 2 teams from the Playoffs will then progress to the next stage which will be the World Cup Qualifier to be contested among the bottom five Super League countries, the top 3 League 2 teams and the top 2 Play-Off representatives. The World Cup Qualifier’s top 2 teams will then progress to India to compete along with the hosts and the top 7 Super League countries for the 2023 World Cup honors. A long winding, very difficult road ahead without question, but one that is now unavoidable and which must be traveled. As such all concerned parties would do well to ensure that they are on exactly the same page in deciding how best the journey can be embarked on so as to achieve the most desired outcome of ultimately making to India in 2023 as the final destination. All aboard!

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What you need to understand is that, if you are fit, it means you are disciplined, because you have to be disciplined to go to the gym and train consistently. If you are disciplined, it means that you have a strong mindset, and that you understand and can control your emotions, because there are plenty of days when you don’t feel like training, but your discipline, self motivation and mindset can get you through those tough days/sessions.

season with the revamped HCL structure. With the support of our proud sponsors, enthusiastic board members, and player retention, we are all set and ready for the season to start. We would like to take this opportunity to thank NSCA for assisting us and providing valuable feedback as and when needed during this phase. Our short term goal is to win both divisions of HCL 2019 by cultivating the camaraderie within the club. We would also thrive for success with our long term goal to produce quality players to team Nova Scotia that can eventually represent the Canadian National Team.”

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As mentioned in the March edition of Wickets, Nova Scotia’s Halifax Cricket League has undergone significant change this offseason with the League evolving into an independent club structure. A League is only as strong as the clubs it is made up of, and the Halifax Cricket League is fortunate to have four strong foundation clubs with strong management teams.

East Coast Cricket Club has formed out of the former Halifax Gold team that has long been a dominant force in the HCL, winning the League in 2016 and 2017 as well as the Deonarine Cup Tournament in 2017. 2018 saw a 3rd place finish in Division 1 and their Division 2 team were losing finalists. They have been a strong contributor of players to the Nova Scotia provincial team, with notable personnel including NSCA President and Cricket Canada Director Amit Joshi, Canadian HP spin bowlers Arun Nag and Daksh Talwar (who was one of the most notable transfers in the offseason), and other long term provincial players in Neel Patel and Tushar Sehgal. ECCC President Neel Patel quotes “We are very excited to play our first

Halifax Cricket Club are the successors to Halifax Blue, who broke through in 2018 in a big way winning both the Division 1 and Division 2 Leagues. The Cannons have been one of the more active clubs in recruitment this offseason, gaining multiple players from other clubs as well as finding some promising new players. The club is led off the field by President Sagar Mandhan, and on the field the club has numerous provincial players including NS vice-captain Sunny Patel, Touseef Mahmood Fahim, former provincial captain Matt Webb, and will also have former South African first-class player Reeze Telling join them later in the season. Division 1 captain Andrew Irving is excited at what lays ahead. “Creating a new club from scratch has

Halifax Titans Cricket Club have evolved from the Halifax Red team who won the Deonarine Cup in 2018, however missed the Division 1 playoffs for a 2nd successive season. Their Division 2 team were losing semi-finalists in Division 2 having set the pace earlier in the season. These results bely a strong roster led by long time provincial batsman Dinesh Gaddam, with other key players including Antony Roche, Satya Donavalli and perhaps the League’s most exciting rookie in 2019 in pace bowler Kiran Kumar Ageteela. “Halifax Titans offers a great way to meet new friends and socialize with people who share the same interest in cricket. Our club will help players maximize their cricket skills and is also looking forward to planning and hosting various community initiatives including fundraisers, events and competitions” offers Club Director Sri Krishna Gorugantu. Nova Scotia Avengers Cricket Club is the fourth and final club and have grown out of the Halifax Green team who have been Division 1 runners-up in the last two seasons. Avengers have the youngest roster in the League, but still have plenty of leadership in the form of new provincial captain Arslan Khan, Pourush Chowdhury, Muneeb Ahmedani and Sentill Selvamani. Club President Smit Jadav has set an ambitious target for the club. “In the next 5 years, I see us winning 5 trophies and to produce at least 4 provincial players a year. As we know, challenges will inevitably come our way, but we must look at every situation form the perspective of how I can be a solution to this situation”.

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Halifax Cricket League Adopts Independent Club Structure

reinvigorated a lot of guys within the club and provided a lot of excitement and motivation. Our squad has formed really well in the offseason, with backgrounds that stretch through the continents of Africa, Asia, Oceania, Europe and North America resulting in a great diversity of experience. Winning both divisions last year as Halifax Blue will make us the hunted this year, which will be a change for us, but a challenge that I’m confident we’ll be up for.”

Cricket Canada Elects Two New Directors At 2019 AGM

Cricket Canada, Cricket West Indies Ties To Be Strengthened

Cricket Canada has announced the voting results of its May 24-25, 2019 Annual General Meeting held at Montreal.

Johnny Grave on May 14 to update the existing Memorandum of Understanding, designed to strengthen partnerships between both cricket organizations.

The list of the 2019 Elected Board of Directors is as follows: Ranjit Saini - President

The current partnership has seen teams from Canada participate in the CWI’s Men’s Colonial Medical Insurance Super50 Cup, as well as the recent CWI Girls Under 19 Tournament held in Trinidad.

Rashpal Bajwa - Vice President Amanda Pooran - Secretary Charles Pais - Treasurer

Directors at Large

The Cricket Canada President also updated CWI on his organization’s plans for the upcoming second edition of the Global T20 Tournament and CricketFest, to be hosted in Toronto. Both CWI and Cricket Canada agreed to generate a new and expanded partnership in the forthcoming months, that will see more collaboration and participation of players and administrators in cricket, at CWI and Cricket Canada events.

Mohammed Shaikh Harjinder Dhillon Ranjit Chaudhri During the Elections, the Vice President position was contested between the incumbent, Rashpal Bajwa and Amit Joshi. Bajwa withstood Joshi’s challenge to retain his position.

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For the position of Treasurer the incumbent Charles Pais faced a double challenge from Amit Tamrakar and Gurman Khurana. Pais however peresevered over his

challengers to remain unseated. The two Director at Large positions attracted a high number of candidates, eleven in total. At the conclusion of the voting both incumbents, Amit Joshi and Mike Sharma were defeated, The newly elected 2019 Directors at Large were Harjinder Dhillion and Ranjit Chaudhri. They will join Qasim Virk and Mohammed Shaikh whose Director at Large positions were not up for re-election.

Cricket West Indies (CWI) President Ricky Skerritt recently welcomed Cricket Canada’s President Ranjit Saini to Antigua and paid tribute to the longstanding friendship between West Indies and Canada cricket. President Saini was hosted at a May 13 dinner meeting by President Skerritt. Presidnet Saini then met with CEO

President Skerritt expressed pleasure at the visit and welcomed the intended collaboration saying, “Cricket Canada and Cricket West Indies have shared a productive and brotherly relationship within the ICC Americas system for many years. All concerned can be assured that this relationship can only get stronger.” Presidents Skerritt and Saini also visited the CCG High Performance Centre and spent time with the West Indies Women’s team who were training in preparation for an upcoming overseas tour to Ireland and England.

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Qasim Virk

Kensington Oval Mecca Send Off For Seymour Nurse Seymour Nurse took to Kensington Oval on Friday May 17 for one final innings, as family, friends and well-wishers came to pay their final respects to the deceased West Indies batting legend of the 1960s. Only Sir Garfield Sobers and Rohan Kanhai batted better for the West Indies than Seymour Nurse in the latter half of the 1960s. This was the view expressed by former Barbados and West Indies fast bowling great Sir Wesley Hall today.

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In a glowing tribute to the late Barbados and West Indies’batsman at his funeral service, Sir Wes described Nurse as his dear and special friend, who was friendly and compassionate off the field with a dignity few people could conceive.

He said Nurse knew that failure on the cricket field would impede his success and worked extremely hard to develop his elegant and stylish stroke play. “Seymour was called Casso by all members of the team after a marathon runner he frequently spoke

about. He knew that failure was not the pathway to success so he practised very hard to try to correct any flaws in his batting. In my book, only Sir Garry Sobers and Rohan Kanhai were rated above him in the late 1960s. Casso was created competitive and he adapted brilliantly to the changing conditions in world cricket and that is why he was so successful against England in 1966 and against New Zealand in his final Test series in 1968,” Sir Wes said. He spoke glowingly of Nurse’s skills as a coach and posited that like Sir Everton Weekes, Sir Garry and Sir Charles Griffith, the master strokeplayer who began his coaching career with the Government Sports Department which became the National Sports Council in the early 1980s, developed the skills of the whole person and not just his cricket talent.

Sir Wes, a highly skilled raconteur, told the story of batting with Sir Garry in the second Test against India at Eden Gardens in 1968, and how the cricket maestro showed him how to pick the googly from the legspinner Bhagwat Chandrasekhar, and the role Nurse played in causing his dismissal. “I struck six fours and went into the dressing room 35 not-out at lunch and Seymour Nurse came to me and asked: ‘Wes, you picking?’ I said ‘I am a Combermerian, therefore I can pick’ and so he was convinced. I should have left it there. I told Seymour ‘the skipper is not picking’. He said ‘what?’ and left. On our way out after lunch, Sir Garry did not say one word to me. The very first ball Chandrasekhar bowled to me, Sir Garry did not raise his bat [the sign from Sobers to Hall to indicate the type of delivery being bowled], I thought it was a legbreak, but the ball reared, struck my gloves and I was caught. I walked down to Sir Garry and asked him what happen. He said: ‘I don’t know, I can’t pick’. As I was leaving the field, Garry said: ‘come here Wes’, and I went. ‘You can pick rice, so go inside’. When I went back into the pavilion, I said to the boys: ‘I want to place it on record, if anyone wants to telephone something, or want to send a telegraph, don’t bother. If you

want somebody to know something, tell Seymour Nurse’,” Sir Wes said, drawing laughter from the hundreds of mourners. Eulogist former Chief Justice Sir David Simmons, who served as the chairman of the National Sports Council from 1981 to 1985, said the outstanding performances by Nurse and Sir Garry against England in the summer of 1966, a couple of months before Independence in November, sent a strong message to Barbados’ colonial masters that the island was ready to take charge of its own affairs. He traced Nurse’s life from his childhood in Jack-MyNanny Gap to his first-class debut for Barbados. Sir David reminded those gathered at the Oval that boys of Nurse’s generation learned to play cricket by observation of the best players around. Sir David, who once performed duties as 12th man for Barbados, said that after Sir Everton took Nurse to Empire even though he had friends at Carlton and Spartan, his [Sir David] loyalties remained at the Bank Hall club. Tributes were also paid by former Barbados and West Indies opening batsman Desmond Haynes, President of the Barbados Cricket Association Conde Riley and President of the Empire Club Adrian King. The service was attended by Barbadians from all walks of life, headed by Governor General Dame Sandra Mason, Prime Minister Mia Mottley, National Hero Sir Garry Sobers and almost the entire Cabinet of the island. Among the many former West Indies cricketers paying their last respects to Nurse were Joel Garner, Robin Bynoe, Philo Wallace, Sherwin Campbell, Ryan Hinds, Wayne Daniel and Ezra Mosely. The service was conducted by Reverend Guy Hewitt and Senator Reverend John. A Rogers. The music was provided by the Police Band under the baton of Director of Music Andrew Lynch. Nurse’s coffin was draped with the flag of Cricket West Indies. Nurse was laid to rest in the Coral Ridge Cemetery in the southern parish of Christ Church in his native Barbados following the official, May 17, Kensington Oval funeral.

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“Casso was not like some coaches of today who seem to coach like how the Pythagorean Theorem is taught in Mathematics. This Theorem has not changed in the 60 years that I have left school, but cricket has changed. The point I am making is that if a person is coaching cricket, they must understand the dynamics of the society they are coaching in. They must understand the thought patterns of their charges and develop them mentally, a coach should understand that some aspects of the game have changed. A coach should not be coaching like if he is teaching Mathematics that doesn’t change,” the former president of the West Indies Cricket Board said.

many T20 leagues, and there’ve understandably been issues regarding contracts.

Ricky Skerritt Unplugged Part II

There are different elements to that. One of them is the issue of remuneration and the freedom to pursue one’s career priorities. What concerned me was more how we drove some people away by our own insular and limited outlook on their needs. Players’ needs are crucial. But the needs of cricket are equally crucial. If you are not communicating with players or having cordial discussions and understandings on both sides, and if there’s no trust, then the best players will not sacrifice anything for what they consider to be the board. We will not ask players to sacrifice anything for the board. We will be reminding players about their responsibility to give back to cricket. I can tell you with my own conversations with some of these players that they would ideally prefer, given the right opportunity, to also play for the West Indies. In no way, will we be upset or disrespectful towards the rights of players to earn an income wherever they can. What we have to do is give them options that make sense to them and us. We cannot dismiss somebody for making a career decision. Twelve months on from qualifying for the World Cup, the West Indies couldn’t ask for a better time to welcome back some big names then.

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Will this selection policy ensure that the West Indies will go into the World Cup with their strongest squad possible?

Absolutely and that’s a policy decision which was made even before we got into office. But it became effective immediately on us getting into office as we wanted it to be cemented before the World Cup. The last 10-11 days since the election, we’ve been bringing in changes in terms of personnel and policies to make sure that we can reach out to everybody who wants to play for West Indies. The people responsible for selecting, managing and leading the squad to the World Cup have been reaching out to players who may be interested, to let them know that the policy has changed and to be clear whether they are available or not, so that when the group gets together next week to make their final decision on the squad, they have as wide a slate to choose from as possible. The problem in the recent

past we discovered was that it was more an informal policy that hovered over the selectors’ heads. And I suspect they erred on the side of political caution and at times made decisions that hurt the team from being strengthened. That led to the policy makers pointing fingers at the selectors for only picking young people. But we know a successful cricket team needs a mix of seniority and young players. Will the team also have a new full-time coach for the World Cup? We are putting in place a very clear policy on that. It’s no disrespect to foreign coaches. We will have international participants in areas where there’s nothing of equal quality available regionally. But regional expertise is a priority for us and was a key area in our 10-point plan. We are very serious about that. That policy too will commence before the World Cup.

This is almost like a request on behalf of world cricket. Can West Indies please go back to being called West Indies and not Windies? It’s already happening. I didn’t understand the extent to which the Windies brand was being developed. It has been a subject of discussion in the past but strictly from a commercial point of view. When we really got alarmed is what we saw during the qualifiers in Zimbabwe last year with Windies on the players’ shirts. That really upset a lot of people. I can tell you in the World Cup this year, the team will be called West Indies and you’ll see West Indies on the shirt, and you will not see West Indies omitted from the brand name in the near future. You also come in during an era where a number of T20 stars from West Indies almost prefer playing in the

That process of having to qualify just to get into the World Cup is one of the most humiliating periods in our cricket history. It was a very depressing thought. But the reality is we haven’t won that World Cup for 40 years. We really have been struggling in ODI cricket and the qualifying process in the final analysis was a wake-up call that we needed. If we were able to get one or two players back into the mix, who themselves like Chris Gayle were worried about the situation, and decided to come back in. I think that it was a good start to a new era. We have to make sure that it’s taken to the next level and it cannot be business as usual.

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Cricket West Indies Newly Elected President Covers A Wide Range Of Issues In Cricbuzz Interview!

West Indies Women Off to England and Ireland

Britney Cooper has been named as the replacement for Deandra Dottin for the West indies Women’s tour to Ireland and England. Deandra suffered damage to her right shoulder and will require corrective surgery, ruling her out of competition for the upcoming months. Dottin’s recent destructive form has seen her rise to be the #1 player in the ICC Women’s T20 All-Rounder rankings, just one ahead of her teammate and captain Stafanie Taylor. Deandra was player of the series in the West Indies Women’s tour to Pakistan in February, where she scored 158 runs and took 3 wickets. Britney Cooper was part of the West Indies Women during the ICC Women’s World T20 held in the Caribbean last November. Seen as an agile fielder and pinch-hitter batter, Cooper notched up the runs during the CWI Women’s Championships in Guyana in March which earned her a spot in the preparation for the Ireland and England tours.

in the IPL Women’s T20 Challenged hosted by the BCCI in India. The West Indies Women will be in search of all six (6) ICC Women’s Championship points when they play England on June 6, 9 and 13 in three (3) One Day Internationals, then three (3) T20 Internationals on June 18, 21 and 25. But before the England tour, they will play Ireland in three (3) T20 Internationals on May 26, 28 and 29. The West Indies Women are currently seventh (7th) on the ICC Women’s Championships points table with 11 points. FULL SQUAD: Stafanie Taylor (captain), Hayley Matthews (vice-captain), Britney Cooper, Afy Fletcher, Karishma Ramharack, Chedean Nation, Chinelle Henry, Kycia Knight, Kyshona Knight, Shakera Selman, Shamilia Connell, Shemaine Campbell, Natasha McLean and Stacy Ann King.

The West Indies Women were in a preparation camp in Antigua from May 6-21. The team was strengthened with the return of Captain Stafanie Taylor, Vice-Captain Hayley Matthews and pacer Shakera Selman, who participated

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Interim Chairman of Selectors Robert Haynes said, “ Obviously it’s very unfortunate with Deandra having to do surgery. She is certainly a key player for us and we wish her a speedy recovery to come back and win matches for the West Indies. Britney has previous experience at the international level and we believe she will make a positive contribution.”

joyed ourselves and were embarking on the journey back to our respective homes under the influence of alcohol. As you can imagine back then, there was no coaching and no cricket played at the school level. But the players from the Pomeroon who had spent some time in Georgetown or on the Essequibo Coast had picked up some basic skills of the game. Cricket in the Pomeroon River did get a shot in the arm when a St. Stanislaus College team came down to play a number of matches and were housed at Martindale School. They demonstrated basic good cricket skills, which assisted in the batting and bowling areas. The best pitch was at Martindale Primary School since they had a turf wicket, which was put together by the nearby farmers. With no roller available they were able to create a smooth compact surface by the use of a large Dutch bottle. This facility was financed by my grandfather, Joseph Martins. He along with some of his colleagues built that institution to provide and educational opportunity for the riverine population. I, was of the many who benefitted directly, having myself attended that school. Petersgill and Jacklow had grounds created from basically a saw milling area, which tended to be soft and subject to fires on a very hot day. This meant buckets of water had to be placed near the boundary during the game.

Looking Back Part 1 With Reds Perreira

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Coming from the Pomeroon to Georgetown at the age of eight, I had very little knowledge of real cricket. In the riverine area it was referred to as ball play and played at various parts of the Pomeroon River, namely Martindale, Charity, Jacklow, Petersgill and Seerickee.

The event was not just cricket but it was part of a total social activity because after it was over those who came by motorboat, launch, or by paddle stayed on to take part in the other half of the social activity. This portion was powered by gas lamp, musical instruments like a guitar, banjo, violin, mandolin etc. and a fair amount of rum drinking and dancing. The dangerous part of the day’s festivities would be after we had thoroughly en-

After arriving in Georgetown I attended St. Mary’s R.C. and got an opportunity to play some cricket in the ground across the road opposite to the Brickdam Cathedral. It was a very small playing area more suited to football, but the priest at the church had created a pitch, which allowed us to at least engage in more practice than matches. There was, however, some opportunity to play against other schools. I remember Christ Church and Sacred Heart players were extremely good at the game. As I

settled down to school life, but returning to the Pomeroon to spend my school holidays, I slowly became acquainted with the cricket grounds in Georgetown. With the help of ZFY and later Radio Demerara I picked up knowledge of the competitions being played and some of the outstanding players. My father was a fairly strict person. And I was not allowed to go to matinee and to watch cricket on the same day. Nine out of ten times, I would choose to go watch cricket. I had, of course, to do all the chores in the house for my mother, e.g. go to LaPentience market to buy fresh greens and fruits, run errands in general and ensure the yard was tidy with all the garbage put away. It was only after completing that commitment to the home, I was given the princely sum of $2.00 and off I went with my sister’s bicycle to begin my cricket education. The competitions being played at that time were Case, Northcote, White, Raja and Frank Cups. The annual meeting of Demerara vs. Berbice for the Jones Cup was also a competition large crowds would follow. It was one way of the players attracting the selectors, with good performances over three days. My first stop would have been at the GCC before peddling over to the DCC; making my way to the EICC (later Everest) on Camp Street, then up Thomas Lands to take in the action at the BGCC and Transport and Harbours Cricket Ground before finishing my rounds at Malteenoes. The Case Cup competition did attract a lot of interest and the crowds were in the hundreds. Because of this high public interest Clubs were able to collect 50 cents to enter the grounds, included were the DCC, which was not fenced at the time, EICC and Transport. If you hadn’t paid your admission you would have had to stand on the road, in the hot sun, to watch the play some distance away. The majority of the Case cup teams were made up of the more experienced players and in

some cases the British Guiana National representatives. The GCC’s team was made up of Peter Bailey, Bruce Parideau, George Camacho, Keith Barker (Barbadian pro), Lenny Thomas and later Leslie White, with John Trim and Norman White leading their attack. The DCC was led by the outstanding Berkeley Gaskin who would go on to play two test matches against England in ’48. It also included the hard-hitting Herbie Dyer, the talented all-rounder Bruiser Thomas, solid opening batsman Haniff Mohammed and a young, emerging, Philbert Blair. The EICC, thanks to the organizing skill of Dr. Ali Shaw, who had tapped into the young Berbice talent of Kanhai and Butcher etc. and supported by the likes of Jackie Wailoo, Norman Rampat, off-spinner Norman Abdool and opening bowler Hussein, produced a competitive side. The BGCC had the British Guiana star batsman, Robert Christiani, his brother Harry, the Test wicket-keeper Clifford McWatt, Charlie Agard, Brian Patoir, while the all-rounder Lloyd Cornelius and Charlie Stayers joined later. The team was further enhanced by the talent of Clyde Walcott, while in the bowling department David Jezza Hill and Wing Gillette carried the bulk of it. A bit of trivia few cricket fans would remember is that Robert and Harry Christiani’s mother and Brian Patior’s father each brought a picnic basket complete with tea to the ground, whenever their sons were playing. Transport and Harbours was well lead by Toby Rollocks who later played for the National team as a leftarm spinner. Along with the Haynes brothers, Joe Elvis and Carlton Reece, it was a side made up of not many national stars, but they had great crowd support and played well as a unit. Malteenoes, also along Thomas Lands, was skippered by Glendon Gibbs and included Pat Legall, and Ossie Gibson, a talented batsman who never got selected for British Guiana. Wicket keeper Norman Maynard rounded out the team.

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Venerated Caribbean Cricket Radio Commentator Joseph Reds Perreira celebrated his 80th birthday this past May 20th. In hearty celebration of a well lived life, characterized as it has been by his most outstanding contribution to West Indies cricket and Caribbean sports in general, Cricket Wickets is proud to present Reds’ nostalgic recollection of his broadcasting career as the first of a three part series.

Barbados Tridents Announce Jason Holder As 2019 Marquee Player

The USA-based CMG Companies (CMG) leads a team of local and international investors in the acquisition of the cricket franchise in Barbados. CMG, through its affiliates, primarily owns and operates franchise restaurants, hotels, and real estate across America and is one of the largest owners of a major fast-food franchise. CMG is also no stranger to sports, with sponsorship deals with NBA teams including the Dallas Mavericks, several similar initiatives at the collegiate and grassroots level, investment in MASL’s Dallas Sidekicks, along with past

ownership of CPL’s very own Jamaica Tallawahs. Manish Patel, Principal of CMG, says “Selling our ownership rights of the winning Jamaica Tallawahs held from 2014-2016 was the right move for us as a business, but we missed being involved in the Region and in CPL. When the chance to purchase the Tridents came along we were delighted, especially with the opportunity to bring good strong local partners onboard. We can’t wait to get started at enhancing the profile of this team on and off the field and to bringing a comprehensive sports entertainment package to Barbados. We will work very hard to make Barbadians proud of their team.” New co-owners and local entrepreneurs Kailash Pardasani of Promotech, and Terrol Cummins and Arvind Gopwani of Silver Technetium Capital Inc. (STCI) are

excited about the opportunity for Barbadians to venture into sports entertainment in an era where the new format of cricket has generated renewed excitement in investment opportunities worldwide including India, Australia and the UK among others. Tridents Co-CEO Kailash Pardasani reveals that the investment by local partners is “an investment in Barbados and a vote of confidence in the resilience of its people and the resurgence of the country as a whole. Cricket has been an integral part of the fabric of our society and has uplifted and united families and entire communities. We are investing in that. We couldn’t ask for better investment partners and for a better time to place our money and efforts while continuing to be huge fans.” Pete Russell, COO of Hero CPL, said: “The issues that the Tridents have faced in recent months have been well

documented and are being fully addressed as a priority. We have been working tirelessly to find a solution and we believe that this international-local investor collaboration is the ideal solution. This is a group of passionate cricket fans and astute business minds who have experience of successfully running a CPL franchise. The Tridents are in safe hands and the issues the franchise has faced are a thing of the past.” The arrival of an experienced and successful ownership team means that the Tridents will now enter the 2019 tournament on a solid financial footing and with a clear plan both on and off the field. Local investors in the Tridents are focused on renewing the connection between the franchise and the local community, through partnerships with the Barbadian business community and a lineup of fan-centric events and content.

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The Barbados Tridents have a new ownership team in place who have taken over the running of the franchise with immediate effect. They have also announced that West Indies Test and ODI captain, Jason Holder, will be their Marquee Player for the 2019 Hero Caribbean Premier League season.

Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Nitish Kumar Picked For St Lucia Stars In CPL 2019 Canadian all-rounder Nitish Kumar was selected by the St Lucia Stars during the May 22 Caribbean Premier League 2019 Players Draft. Kumar was the only Canadian player to be drafted by any of the six participating Franchises. The 2019 CPL completed Franchise Rosters are as follows: Barbados Tridents:

St Lucia Stars:

Lasith Malinga, Fawad Ahmed, Daren Sammy, Thisara Perera, Andre Fletcher, Kesrick Williams, John Campbell, Niroshan Dickwella, Obed McCoy, Rahkeem Cornwall, Roland Cato, Jeavor Royal, Andre McCarthy, Beuran Hendricks, Chris Barnwell, Kiddy Lesporis Nitish Kumar. Coach Brad Hodge. Assistant Coach Garey Mathurin

Coach Simon Katich. Assistant Coach Imran Jan. St Kitts Patriots:

Isuru Udana, Fabian Allen, Evin Lewis, Carlos Brathwaite, Rassie Van Der Dussenm Laurie Evans, Sheldon Cottrrell, Devon Thomas, Rayad Emrit, Sharmarh Brooks, Jeremiah Louis, Dominic Drakes, Afif Hossain, Kenroy Cotty, Akeem Jordan, Usama Mir, Aaron Jones. Coach Donovan Miller. Assistant Coach Trevor Penney.

Trinbago Knight Riders: Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard, Sunil Narine, Colin Munro, Denesh Ramdin, Darren Bravo, Muhmmad Hasnain, Khary Pierre, James Neesham, Seekuge Prasanna, Amir Jangoo, Anderson Phillip, mark deyal, Tion Webster, Javon Searles, Akeal Hosen, Ali Khan.

Alex Hales, Jason Holder. Asif Ali, Wahab Riaz, Sandeep Lamichane, Johnson Charles, Shai Hope, Ashley Nurse. Imad Wasim, Jonathan Carter, Chemar Holder, Leniko Boucher, Roshon Primus, Raymon Reifer, Justin Greaves, Joshua Bishop, Hayden Walsh. Coach Robin Singh. Assistant Coach; Vasbert Drakes

Jamaica Tallawahs: Andre Russell, Chris Gayle, Chadwick Walton, Rovman Powell, Zahir Khan, Oshane Thomas, Glenn Phillips, George Worker, Amad Butt, Christopher Lamont, Shamar Springer, Ramaal Lewis, Steven Jacobs, Derval Green, Javelle Glen, Imran Khan, Xavier Marshall Coach Mark Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Donnell, Assistant Coach Ramnaresh Sarwan

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Guyana Amazon Warriors: Shadab Khan. Nicholas Pooran, Shoaib Malik, Shimoron Hetmeyer, ben Laughlin. Chris Green, Keom Paul, Sherfane Rutherford, Brandon King, Romario Shepherd, Odean Smith, Keagan Simmons, Chanderpaul Hemraj, Veerasammy Permaul, Anthony Bramble, Cinton Pestano, Saurabh Netravalkar Coach Johan Botha, Assistant Coach Rayon Griffith

Dre Rus Hungry For 2019 World Cup Success!

Contractual disputes between the players and Cricket West Indies have weakened the team for several years now with the frosty relations famously culminating in the 2014 tour of India being called off midway through the series. There have been signs of a thaw recently, however, with a new leadership team in place at the board and the twice 50-over World Cup champions have included former captain Chris Gayle and Russell in their 15-man squad. The 30-year-old Russell was in blistering form for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the recent Indian Premier League and possesses the highest strike rate of over 209 in the Twenty20 tournament while scoring 406 runs in 11 games.

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‘I wasn’t surprised that I was a part of the World Cup squad,’ Russell had told reporters ahead of KKR’s home match against the Mumbai Indians at the Eden Gardens.

‘I’ve been doing well, I’ve been back and forth with the selectors and the coaches back home. I know once I’m doing my work here and performing, that will lead to national duties.

‘I wasn’t really focused on the World Cup. I was just trying to make sure that whatever happened here, I did my best and put my best foot forward.’ Russell, who also bowls medium pace, is averaging 58 with the bat and has smashed 42 sixes during the 2019 edition of the IPL – 10 more than closest rival Gayle, who plays for the King’s XI Punjab.

thing about it. ‘But as I said, I’m so hungry right now to represent the West Indies and smash sixes and do what I’ve been doing here and score hundreds.’

The Jamaican, who has also taken eight wickets, has been the standout performer for his franchise, who have lost their six consecutive matches after picking up four wins in their first five outings of the tournament. Russell hopes he can continue his form into the May 30-July 14 World Cup, where the 1975 and 1979 champions open their campaign against Pakistan in Nottingham. ‘I’m so hungry now to represent the West Indies,’ said Russell, who played for West Indies against Bangladesh last July in an ODI for the first time since November, 2015. ‘The last time I joined the West Indies team was recently, when I had taken two injections to better my knee and it flared up again. I was so upset. I was watching the game against England and couldn’t do any-

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Andre Russell has represented West Indies in only a single one-day international since 2015 but his World Cup call-up was not surprising and the hard-hitting all-rounder is hungry to represent the Caribbean side again.

England v India 2011

Low-scoring thrillers, tenterhook ties and compelling comebacks – the 11 editions of the Cricket World Cup have had them all. Whether it’s a Kevin O’Brien-inspired Ireland chasing down 328 or India recovering from 17 for five to claim victory, cricket fans have been on the edge of their seats from the start. And as the world’s top 10 teams prepare to do battle for cricket’s greatest prize across 11 venues, a slew of new classic matches are sure to follow. Here’s a walk down memory lane through the Cricket World Cup’s top 10 matches.

Australia v West Indies, 1975 The first Cricket World Cup final was always going to go down in the annals – but West Indies and Australia produced a game that stands the test of time as one of the tournament’s greatest.

Lord’s was the stage and scorching midsummer weather meant the crowds were spilling out of the bleachers, young fans romping onto the outfield with every boundary struck. And Clive Lloyd played a canonical captain’s innings, hauling his side from 50 for three into the ascendancy thanks to a brutal century in a 149 fourth-wicket stand with Rohan Kanhai. Despite a rousing run-chase, solidified by Ian Chappell’s 62, Australia fell 17 runs short of a target of 291 – ousted by Viv Richards’s excellence in the field, memorable executing three straight runouts.

Australia v South Africa, 1999 Nine runs with one over remaining. It seemed a simple equation separating South Africa and the Cricket World Cup final – yet what followed was an art form of indecision and drama that saw them miss out on a first-ever final. Australia hauled themselves to 213, reigned in by Shaun Pollock’s five for 36, and Jonty Rhodes and Jacques Kallis combined to leave their country needing one run to win with one wicket left.

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But when Lance Klusener bunted to mid-off, Allan Donald didn’t hear his call for a quick single, Adam Gilchrist whipped off the bails and the Aussies wheeled away.

England v Ireland, 2011 In the storied history of the Cricket World Cup, no single name has ever been so deeply intertwined with one fix-

Cricket can’t produce a sharper pressure than the expectation on India ahead of a World Cup campaign on home soil and an opening-night win over Bangladesh assuaged nerves. And Bangalore was treated to the Little Master at his magical best, Sachin Tendulkar caressing his way to 120 and setting a towering 339. ture as Kevin O’Brien is with this particular thriller. The first half of the game saw Goliath flex their muscles, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott firing England to 327 for eight from their 50 overs, a total no side had ever previously chased down. Up stepped O’Brien, without a half-century in nine World Cup knocks, to bludgeon 13 fours and six sixes to upset the steepest odds.

Andrew Strauss, not a batsman whose technique recalls short-form pyrotechnics, led by example in compiling 158 – Graham Swann and Ajmal Shahzad shepherding their side to a thrilling tie.

India v Zimbabwe, 1983

There’s something sublime about a team romping unfettered to victory but there’s nothing that woos crick-

It was the fastest century in Cricket World Cup history and an innings that may never be bettered for its sheer significance to the Irish cricketing story.

New Zealand v South Africa, 2015 Where else but Eden Park for New Zealand’s red-letter World Cup day, the best part of 100 overs of a pulsating semi-final that ended with the hosts victorious. South Africa – again in search of a first showpiece appearance – had their foot in the home side’s throat for the most part, Faf du Plessis and AB De Villiers dragging their side to 281 from 43 overs. The Proteas were met with the full force of a nation in the run-chase, however, and Brendon McCullum’s bat to boot as the skipper slapped 56 at a cool strike-rate of 226. It needed Grant Elliott to play the innings of his life, however, matching the pressure of needing five runs from two balls by lifting Dale Steyn for six over mid-on and sparking wild celebrations.

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The ICC World Cup’s Greatest Matches!

There doesn’t need to be a winner for a game to be a stone-cold classic and 2011’s clash between host nation India and England proves that in abundance.

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eting hearts more than a rousing recovery from batting oblivion. India sunk to 17 for five in a top-order totter to match all others and it seemed their signal victory over reigning champions West Indies in the opening game would go to waste. But skipper Kapil Dev smote 175 from 138 balls, somehow sending his side up to 266 and setting a stern runchase for Zimbabwe. Madan Lal and Dev turned the screw with the ball, earning a remarkable victory and setting the tone for a campaign that would end in India lifting the World Cup trophy at Lord’s a fortnight later.

India vs Pakistan 2003 Great rivals India and Pakistan produced a superb encounter and those present in Centurion saw three phenomenon’s of the one-day game at the peak of their powers. The first was Saeed Anwar, who flicked and forced his way to a century to keep his team in the contest by posting 273 for seven from 50 overs. Tendulkar was, once again, at his nuggety best and produced one of his best one-day innings to guide his side to victory.

Australia v India, 1987 With the Cricket World Cup venturing away from familiar English climes for the first time since its inception, a thrilling opening game was needed to prove India could be equally fine hosts. But none of the thousands who packed into the ground in Madras could have envisaged just how closely matched the two nations would be.

For every Indian wicket that fell, a commanding partnership followed in a compelling push-pull encounter but the heroics of Navjot Sidhu and Krishnamachari Srikkanth would prove in vain and a one-run loss.

Australia vs West Indies 1996 This game marked the passing of one cricketing dynasty and the birth of another as West Indies were stopped at the semi-final stage for the first time ever by Australia. Richie Richardson, bowing out of one-day cricket at the end of the tournament, would have been rubbing his hands when Australia slumped to 15 for four.

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But even as Stuart Law and Michael Bevan led a recovery to 207, West Indies looked like they had more than enough as Shivnarine Chanderpaul careered them to 165 for two.

Then came a batting collapse of epic proportions, seven wickets falling for 29 runs and the Aussies reaching their first final in nine years.

But many will remember the game for the sheer venom of Shoaib Akhtar’s bowling, dismissing Tendulkar with an absolute snorter that struck a blow for the whole of Pakistan.

India v Windies 1983 You can’t beat a low-scoring thriller and one of the classics of the genre came on the biggest stage – the Cricket World Cup final 36 years ago. The vaunted West Indies bowling attack suffocated India with swing, seam and pace with Andy Roberts taking three for 32 from 10 overs and Malcolm Marshall and Michael Holding two scalps each. Knocking off 184 seemed an elementary task but Viv Richards’s side faltered, failing to live up to the favourites tag that saw them victorious in the first two editions of the tournament. Madan Lal and Mohinder Amarnath were chief tormentors as the great cricketing power of the era was brought to its knees in front of 30,000 at Lord’s. Source: Cricinfo

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Australia silenced the home crowd with a commanding effort with the bat, Geoff Marsh carving out 110 and asking India to chase down 270 from their 50 overs.