-say Sarwan, Seeram, Moore

By Tamica Garnett
Team Captain, Ramnaresh Sarwan and coach, Ravindranauth Seeram are of the opinion that Guyana’s win at the just-concluded West Indies Cricket Board’s (WICB) Twenty20 Caribbean Championship will play a vital role in emphasising the rise of the state of cricket in Guyana.

Acknowledging that the state of cricket in Guyana over the past few years had slipped to low levels, the pair said they felt that Saturday’s win could be the starting point for showing to the world that Guyana’s cricket was again on the rise.

Speaking with Stabroek News at the Dr. Cheddi Jagan International Airport after the team’s arrival Sunday night, Seeram stated that he felt that Guyana’s exceptional win had come at just the moment to give Guyanese cricket the upliftment that it needs.

“I think it came at just the right moment for us. It was an exceptional win for us, and I think this will really encourage cricket in Guyana,” Seeram stated.

He said that his only doubt was in the team’s bowling capacity but after things began to pick up in that area his confidence grew on the team’s ability to overcome the odds and win the tournament.

“Our weakness was in our bowling but then the guys started to bowl well and the guys really got themselves together and because of that I knew that we had a really good chance,” he said.

“Every team was a challenge we did not take anything lightly,” Seeram added.

Echoing Seeram, Sarwan said that taking into consideration the state of Guyana’s most recent past performances; this will be a big boost for the game here.

He added that more often than not when the senior players were not around, the senior team tended to struggle a bit.

He, however, said he believes this most recent performance shows that Guyana is still producing its stars.

“This is a big boost for us as a team and us as a country because we haven’t really done so well in the past.

“It (the win) has done wonders for us. We’ve always been there and about where cricket is concerned. When we, some of the top players such as myself, when we are not around, cricket tends to struggle, but I think it is evident from this tournament that we have young stars rising,” Sarwan added.

Carl Moore, the team’s manager, said that he believes that the win could be attributed to the preparatory measures that were implemented this time around.

Moore stated that while the team did not get a long period to train the intensity of the training, nevertheless, made up for this.

“The preparation was very good and intense, even though it was for a short period of time it was very intense.

“There was the training and then there was a competition too that they played just before and I think that had a lot to do with it,” Moore stated.

The national team plied their way through the tournament playing unbeaten and with the victory, earned the right to represent the Caribbean at the upcoming Club Champions League scheduled to take place in South Africa in September.

Asked whether Guyana will be able to surpass Trinidad’s performance, Seeram said that as with the   Twenty20 tournament, the team will be taking this tournament one game at a time although their ultimate aim will always be winning the tournament.

“Definitely we just have to go and make sure we win the games and get to the final. When we get there we can produce the same performance that we did here.”