TTCB – News

BG T&T U15 Final: Central, East clash for BG T&T crown
March 30, 2011

PRESIDENT of the T&T Cricket Board, Azim Bassarath, right, with Krysta De Lima , centre, BG T&T's Chief of Staff and Andrew Mc Intosh, a motivational speaker at the launch of the BG T&T Under-15 cricket competition.
PHOTO COURTESY T&T CRICKET BOARD

CENTRAL have their eyes firmly set on scoring back to back victories in the final of the 2011 BG T&T Under-15 cricket tournament against East which starts on Thursday, March 31 at the National Cricket Centre at Balmain in Couva.

The defending champions will be depending heavily on the experience and current impressive form of their three holdouts from last year's team --- Varindra Jagroop, Justin Joseph and Nicholas Pooran.

Manager of the Central team, Fareed Khan said his players are confident of defeating East in the two-day final and aim to dominate the national team selection for the first regional Under-15 competition scheduled for later this year in Trinidad and Tobago.

Khan credited excellent team performance for their successful path to the final saying that the players have been focussed on building partnerships in the middle and have been supported by tight bowling and excellent fielding.

In preliminary round play Central beat both Tobago and North East outright; while their match against South East was rained out. And they made sure of getting into the BG T&T championship match by gaining first innings points over South in the semi-finals.

Khan said while they triumphed in last year's final against North, it was a one-day affair while this year the competition is being played over two days to give the youngsters a taste of the longer form of the game.

"We have adapted very well and have been concentrating a lot on the mental aspect of the our game. Our coach Pradeep Vishnu has also been doing a very good job with the boys so allround we are prepared for what East has to offer," said Khan.

However Rajendra Ramadin, coach of the East team says his team will be strenghtened by the return of their inspirational captain Jeremy Solozano who contracted dengue fever and missed out on the semi-final against South East.

East's road to the final and a shot at dethroning Central was paved by an outright victory against South West; and a rained-out match against South East after they lost to North on first innings.

However they are counting on the return of captain Solozano and the continued good form of batsman Brian Christmas, Afdal Khan and Jamalie Johnson to take them to the Under-15 title.

"We are confident of winning the final. Our team is prepared and we are ready for the two-day challenge. The boys are brimming with confidence," said Ramadin.

BG T&T once again has contributed significantly towards the staging of the tournament aimed at unearthing the best Under-15 talent in Trinidad and Tobago.