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GUYANA CHRONICLE Thursday December 24, 2015
Teamwork critical for Jaguars Super50 success – Crandon By Rajiv Bisnauth GUYANA have not won a Regional One-Day title in nine years. Their last of nine titles was during the 2005-06 season when they defeated Barbados by seven runs under the Duckworth/Lewis system. However, head coach Esaun Crandon said that even though they are the losing finalists last season, it will be important that they play as a team during the upcoming Super50 competition in Trinidad and Tobago and St Kitts and Nevis. Crandon disclosed that his main aim will be centred
ESAUN CRANDON more on playing as a cohesive unit which is vital for the team’s success. “Teamwork will be the
key for us. Last year we played some good cricket leading up to the final, but we didn’t manage to pull it off. Sunil Narine was at his best, and we didn’t really handle him in the circumstances,” Crandon told Chronicle Sport yesterday. He added “We have been playing some good cricket in the four-day version, but it will be that transformation from the four-day to the limited over, but I don’t see that huge difference, the same basic things are required”. The Jaguars have been working hard over the past three days and Crandon, a former national player himself, knows the worth and value of putting in the hard work, especially as time winds down to the
start of the competition. “We have some stuff that we want to work on that we haven’t done well last year, the fielding; we want to pull up in that area, bowling in the final stages of the game, and rotation of the strike are some of the stuff we are working on, so those are some of the things once we do them well will contribute to the team’s success,” he said. The Jaguars will play two practice games on January 28 and 30 before the final squad is selected. Both games are set for the Guyana National Stadium, with the final game confirmed to be a day/night encounter, commencing at 14:00hrs. The squad, along with
the management unit, will depart for St Kitts and Nevis on January 4. The NAGICO Super50 tournament opens on January 7, and will again be contested between eight teams, comprising the six territorial franchises, as well as the Marooners and an ICC Americas composite side. The Jaguars have been placed in Group ‘B’ alongside Jamaica Scorpions, Windward Islands Volcanoes and Leeward Islands Hurricanes. Group ‘B’ will be played in St Kitts. The preliminary competition will be played under a non-elimination format with the eight teams equally divided into two groups. Each side is carded to play six matches apiece
during the preliminary rounds, with each playing the others in their group twice. The top two teams from each group advance to the semi-finals at Queen’s Park Oval, where the group winners play the runners-up from the opposite group in a one-off match for a place in the Grand Final on Sunday, January 24, at the same venue. This equals a total of 27 matches for the biggest, senior regional domestic 50 overs-a-side tournament ever staged by the WICB. Group ‘A’, which will be played in Trinidad and Tobago, comprises Red Force, Marooners, Barbados Pride and ICC Americas.
Berbice softball teams to WICB congratulates participate in Unity Cricket Stafanie Taylor on ICC Award FOUR softball teams from Berbice will participate in the Legacy and 007 Promotions’ Unity Cricket at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence on January 30. The organisers have
SHEMAINE CAMPBELLE collaborated with corporate sponsors and received support from the Guyana Cricket Board and the Guyana Floodlights Softball Cricket Association. The event culminates with a galaxy of International stars competing under lights in a Twenty20 game for the President’s Trophy and winners’ purse of G$1M. Berbice Masters are billed to face Demerara Masters (Over-45s) in a 15-over affair for a winners’ prize of $150 000 and a Demerara female team will oppose Berbice with the winners of the 15-over
game collecting $200 000. Two of Berbice’s top teams which include Karibee Boyz, should provide a stern test for city sides Wolf Warriors and Regal in what promises to be two intriguing semi-final affairs with the winners clashing for $500 000 and a trophy in the final. This game will precede the feature match which commences at 20:00hrs. The action begins at 11:00hrs with the first 10/10 semi-final between Wolf Warriors and one of the Berbice teams before the other semi between Regal and the other team from Berbice. The 10/10 final will start at 17:30hrs after a Demerara Masters Team face a Berbice Masters in a 15over fixture and the Demerara girls take on their counterparts from Berbice. Left-hander Wayne Jones, Rickey Deonarine and Lloyd Rooplall are expected to feature for the Demerara Masters while Berbice Cricket Board’s president, the big-hitting Anil Beharry should represent his home county although he now resides in the city while Troy Kippins and John Sumir should boost the Berbice attack. The Berbice girls will depend on West Indies female players Shemaine C a m p b e l l e , Tre m a y n e Smartt and Eva Giddings while Demerara should
have in their line-up Latoya Smith, Kavita Yadram and Haseena Mohamed. Regal’s Richard Latiff and Shien Gittens and Wolf Warriors’ Mark Harold and Amit Ria are expected be in action before the largest crowd they have entertained. An anticipated capacity crowd will see players like Ramnaresh Sarwan, Lendl Simmons, Dwayne Smith, Darren Sammy, Andre Russell, Krismar Santokie, Riyad Emrit, Nick Pooran, Leon Johnson, Rajendra Chandrika, Chris Barnwell, Jonathon Foo, Veerasammy Permaul, Devendra Bishoo, Anthony Bramble, Steven Jacobs, Raymon Reifer and Jevon Searles compete against each other. The organisers are also awaiting confirmation from two of the most exciting T20 players in the world.
ST JOHN’S, Antigua – The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) today congratulated Stafanie Taylor on winning one of the most prestigious awards in women’s cricket. Taylor, the West Indies women’s captain, was named the International Cricket Council’s Women’s T20I Cricketer-of-the-Year, at the ICC Annual Awards announced for the period September 18, 2014 to September 13, 2015. This is the third time the 24-year-old top-order batter and off-spinner won a major international award. She previously won the ICC Women’s ODI Cricketer-ofthe-Year award in 2011 and 2012. During the period under review Taylor scored 340 runs in nine matches with a best score of 78 off
WICB, BCCI keep cricket at centre of a resolution St. JOHN’s, Antigua – WEST Indies Cricket Board (WICB) President, Dave Cameron, today (December 23) confirmed that following discussions with BCCI President, Shashank Manohar, that the West Indies will host India in the Caribbean in 2016. This agreement is subject to the WICB and the Players Association giving a joint commitment to complete, at a later date, the tour which prematurely ended in October 2014. “Cricket remained the centrepiece of our discussion and we are happy to be at this juncture,” added Cameron.
Stafanie Taylor during the home series against Pakistan. (WICB Media Photo/ Randy Brooks)
58 balls against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Earlier this year she led West Indies to a 3-0 series sweep against Pakistan. Dave Cameron, president of the WICB, lauded Taylor for her award-winning performances and leadership of the West Indies women’s team. “On behalf of the WICB and the various stakeholders in West Indies cricket I want to extend congratulations to Stafanie on winning this major award on the ICC cricketing calendar. She has been an outstanding representative and ambassador for West
Indies from the first time she stepped foot on the international stage, back in 2008, and she keeps getting better,” Cameron said. “Stafanie has demonstrated that she is not just an excellent batter and bowler but also a very good leader. She did a fantastic job when she took over the captaincy against Pakistan earlier this year and was immediately rewarded with a series victory. This award will help raise the profile of women’s cricket in the West Indies as it is further proof that young women in the Caribbean can rise to the top of the world in their chosen endeavour.”