In pursuit of a “Three-Peat”, defending Professional Cricket League (PCL) Four-Day Champs Guyana Jaguars have chosen to stick with a winning side ahead of Friday’s opening round of the 2016/17 tournament.
The two-time champs will begin their title defense against the Jamaica Scorpions at the Providence National Stadium, East Bank Demerara, and the 13-man team named yesterday is virtually unchanged from last season.
West Indies Test opener Leon Johnson, who was also the leading run-scorer last season, will lead the side for the third consecutive year. Another prolific scorer, West Indies A batsman Vishaul Singh, who is a key figure in the middle-order, was named as Johnson’s deputy.
On paper the Jags have an imposing unit, with six of their players fresh off either West Indies senior team or A team duty.
Rajendra Chandrika (West Indies Test/A), Devendra Bishoo (West Indies Test), Veerasammy Permaul (West Indies A), Keon Joseph (West Indies A), Gudakesh Motie (West Indies A), all played key roles during the champs amazing unbeaten run and should be seeking to use their recent international experiences to help their team retain the title.
Apart from the aforementioned stars, Guyana will have West Indies U-19 World Cup winning skipper Shimron Hetmyer, wicket-keeper Anthony Bramble, Chris Barnwell and Bajan Raymon Reifer.
Another key player retained was the veteran Shivnarine Chanderpaul whose experience will aid in the development of the current crop of young batting stars, as well as keeping the middle-order together.
Regarding the management team of the Jaguars, Head Coach Esuan Crandon who was also assistant coach of the Guyana Amazon Warriors during the 2016 CPL, will be looking for another championship from his players. Assistant Coach/ Manager Rayon Griffith is expected to make even more strides this season, after a successful stint as assistant coach of the West Indies A team.
The Guyana Jaguars 13-man squad is as follows: Rajendra Chandrika ,Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Shimron Hetmyer, Leon Johnson (Captain), Vishaul Singh (Vice Captain), Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Raymon Reifer, Anthony Bramble, Veerasammy Permaul, Devendra Bishoo, Gudakesh Motie, Keon Joseph and Christopher Barnwell.
Esuan Crandon (Coach), Rayon Griffith (Assistant Coach/Manager), Beverley Nelson (Physio)
