Former Guyana and West Indies captain Ramnaresh Sarwan visited the Guyana National Stadium at Providence yesterday; and, at the lunch interval in the ongoing seventh-round clash between Guyana Jaguars and Leeward Islands Hurricanes, called for the CWI to organize a Regional T20 tournament to aid in producing a larger quantity of local players.
In 2012, the local Regional T20 tournament was replaced by “The biggest party in sport”, the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL).
The 39-year-old Sarwan reasoned: “If we take the IPL, were you to make a comparison, you would see quite a few players that would have played international cricket. Those hidden talents were identified in the IPL because they have more teams and franchises participating. In our situation we only have CPL, so maybe the board can think of a Regional T20 tournament, something similar to what Stanford had, and then we should be able to see the talent in the Caribbean and nurture them from there on,” Sarwan disclosed.
The man who had captained Guyana to a championship victory in the Stanford T20 in 2006 shared his sentiments on the current young batsmen in the West Indies team.
“The player that stands out for me is young Shimron Hetmyer, who has an abundance of talent. It’s important that he gets that talent into production, and of course, it’s just a matter of time to get his mind right, and we get a sort of consistency that is needed from him.
“The other guy is Shai Hope. We have seen what he is doing in the One-Day format, and I think that can be easily transferred into Test cricket. And (then there is) Roston Chase,” Sarwan explained.
Thankful for the opportunity provided by CWI to interact with West Indies players, Sarwan opined that these players are receptive. He also shed some light on Nicholas Pooran, whom he believes has the ability to play Test cricket.
Commenting on how West Indies can improve in ODIs and Tests, Sarwan said the players must have the best foundation and best opportunities. He noted that these players must have the right mentality, the right facilities, and coaches to ensure their flaws are corrected. With West Indies set to tour England in the summer, Sarwan is urging the players to be mentally strong in tough English conditions.
“Once we can make that mental adjustment, our batters are equipped to score runs, and our bowlers will be able to bowl well,” Sarwan noted.
Sarwan, who played 87 Tests and 181 ODIS, also touched on the T20 World Cup that is slated to be played later this year, and declared that Andre Russell is a match-winning asset for the Caribbean team. He also described Dwayne Bravo’s return as a plus
“To have (Bravo’s) experience and ability, that is very good for West Indies,” he said. With the Regional 4-Day tournament currently being played, Sarwan opined that for the cricketing standard to be lifted, better facilities must be in place for the Regional players. Sarwan, who had scored 15 Test centuries and five ODI tons, also believes that West Indies have what it takes to win the upcoming T20 World Cup later this year. (Brandon Corlette)
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