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GUYANA CHRONICLE Thursday, August 25, 2016
Director of Sport hands over flood lamps for MSC ground D I R E C TO R o f S p o r t Christopher Jones came through on a promise to the Linden Community when he formally handed over to the Region, yesterday, 15 flood lamps and 10 bulbs that will be erected at the Mackenzie Sports Club (MSC) facility to support the existing fixtures. Jones had committed to providing lights for the facility, in a meeting with the MSC management and the Boyce/Jefford Committee last month, stating that such developmental initiatives were an important facet of the work of the Ministry of Education’s Department of Sport. The initiative was fa-
ILLUMINATION! Director of Sport Christopher Jones (left) hands over one of 15 flood lamps that will be erected at the MSC ground to Regional Executive Officer of Region 10, Gavin Clarke, yesterday while in background from left, Colin Boyce, MSC president, Avery Trim and Edison Jefford share the moment in Linden.
cilitated under the Ground Enhancement Project and delivered to the Region that’s now the conduit for the project. The 1000W Quad Voltage Metal Halide Flood Fixture and 1000W E40 Metal Halide Lamp Bulbs will be erected in time for this weekend’s Boyce & Jefford Track and Field Classic VII at the MSC facility. The lamps and bulbs cost $1 798 000 of a $2M grant under the project. Regional Executive Officer of Region 10, Gavin Clarke, received the items yesterday on behalf of the Linden community. MSC president Avery Trim had welcomed the collabora-
tive efforts that is seeing a much-improved and developed facility. “We are appreciative of these kind sentiments and we will continue to work to get this venue up to the level that we know it to be,” Trim had said. “MSC is upbeat about sports within the community and it is only fair that they have a proper facility.” The facility was a hive of activity yesterday with works ongoing on repainting the stands, along with several other corrective and renovation works. The outlook of the ground was fully grassed and flat with just the marking and final rolling to be done.
Windies, India T20s
Florida to get taste of top-class cricket THE United States will get a rare taste of world-class cricket this weekend when Florida will play hosts to two Twenty20 internationals between the West Indies and India. It is just the third time that full international cricket matches will take place in the U.S., following on from the West Indies’ matches against New Zealand and Sri Lanka in 2010 and against New Zealand again two years later. But this is the first occasion that the world’s most popular team will grace U.S. soil. India’s cricket board, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), is expecting the 15 000 capacity Central Broward Regional Park in Fort Lauderdale to be sold-out for the matches on Saturday and Sunday. It promises to be a lucrative venture for both India and West Indies cricket, with tickets priced from $75 up to $250. But the game’s global governing body insists it also
fulfils the latest step in developing cricket in the United States. Last year the International Cricket Council (ICC) suspended the USA Cricket Association and took control of the right to sanction which events could take place in the U.S. That led to a three-match Cricket All-Stars tour last November, featuring legends of the game led by Sachin Tendulkar and Shane Warne. And, in announcing the ICC’s approval of the series earlier this month, chief executive David Richardson explained what he hopes the U.S. will get out of matches between the sides ranked second and third in the T20I rankings. “The ICC has approved these matches because we believe they can play a significant role in the long-term development of cricket in the USA and our ongoing efforts to unify the USA cricket community,” he said. “Having the ICC World
CRICKET QUIZ CORNER (Thursday August 25, 2016) COMPLIMENTS OF THE TROPHY STALL-Bourda Market & The City Mall ( Tel: 225-9230) & AUDREY’S TASTY SNACKETTE-176 Charlotte Street, Georgetown (Tel: 226-4512) Answers to yesterday’s quiz: (1) A Draw (2) Ravi Ashwin Today’s Quiz: (1) Who totalled most runs in the just-concluded four-match Test series between WI and India? (2) Who took most wickets? Answers in tomorrow’s issue
T20 Champions playing India in Florida will undoubtedly inspire both existing and new fans and players, but perhaps more importantly, the sanction fees will be invested into the ICC’s ongoing work to lay a sustainable foundation for the development of cricket in America.” It certainly promises to be a high-quality matchup. While the West Indies continued their struggles in Test cricket in recent weeks with a comprehensive 2-0 series defeat at home to India, they are the reigning kings in the sport’s shortest format having won the World T20 earlier this year. However, disorder has never been far away in West Indies cricket in recent years. And it has reared its head once again just ahead of the series with
India, with the man who led the team to glory in the 2016 World T20, Darren Sammy, being replaced as captain by Carlos Brathwaite. Sammy has also been excluded from the 13-man squad to travel to Florida. The West Indies Cricket Board has insisted that the decision was based solely on performance. And, if so, there may be some method in the sudden change this time around. Sammy contributed little with the bat or ball during the World T20, while Brathwaite, despite having only ever played eight T20 internationals, stole the headlines by hitting four consecutive final-over sixes to beat England in the final. However, the decision has still sparked angry reactions among some supporters, par-
ticularly with Sammy enjoying a strong season in the Caribbean Premier League. Along the way to the title, the West Indies beat India in the semifinals, ending their hopes of lifting the trophy on home soil and likely providing added motivation going into the two matches in Florida. After an inexperienced team was fielded in a three-match series against Zimbabwe in June, the series will mark the first time that the bulk of the squad from the World T20 will be back in action in the format for their country. After guiding his team to a 2-0 Test series win in the West Indies, Virat Kohli will revert to just batting duties as limited-overs captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni takes command. Twelve of the 14 men select-
ed for the 20-over matches were in the Caribbean for the Test series, with the most significant player left out being Suresh Raina. West Indies T20I Squad vs India Carlos Brathwaite (captain), Andre Fletcher, Andre Russell, Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo, Evin Lewis, Jason Holder, Johnson Charles, Kieron Pollard, Lendl Simmons, Marlon Samuels, Samuel Badree, Sunil Narine India Squad MS Dhoni (captain), Ajinkya Rahane, Amit Mishra, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, KL Rahul, Mohammed Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Stuart Binny, Umesh Yadav, Virat Kohli
Guyana produce silver medal performance
TEAM Guyana at the Caribbean Badminton Team Championships 2016 recorded a silver medal performance when the tournament climaxed on Tuesday evening. After a two-day playoff against Aruba, Trinidad & Tobago, Suriname & Barbados, the Guyanese succumbed to the Dominican Republic 3-2 in a tense match. Narayan Ramdhani lost to Cesar Brito 11-21, 15-21 in the male final while in the Girls’ singles, Ambika Ramraj lost to Nairobi Jimenez: 4-21, 6-21. In the Boys’ doubles, Narayan Ramdhani & Jonathan Mangra defeated Wilmer Brea & Bryan Cas-
Team Guyana at the Caribbean Badminton Championships 2016
tro 21-16, 21-9 while Priyanna Ramdhani & Ambika Ramraj thrashed Carmen Garcia & Francesca Matias: 21-9, 21-7 in the Girls’ doubles In the Mixed doubles, Jonathan Mangra & Priyanna Ramdhani lost to Argenis Marinez & Nairobi Jimenez. Guyana had earlier defeated Suriname 3-2 in the semi-finals. The Guyana players are now playing in the CAREBACO Regional Championships, open to Caribbean member countries only. This is the third part of the CAREBACO events which began yesterday.