A number of regional and local cricketers are set to go on show this evening in a Guyana All-Star versus a Caribbean All-Star matchup at the Guyana National Stadium, in a humanitarian gesture to raise funds for hurricane relief after hurricanes Irma and Maria ravished parts of the region recently.
The match is set to bowl off from 17:00hrs under the theme ‘Cricket Cares’ which is the brainchild of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB), in collaboration with Carib Beer and Keem’s Foundation.
Speaking at a press conference yesterday at the Guyana Marriott Hotel, Guyana skipper Leon Johnson touched on the humanitarian aspect while his counterpart Rayad Emrit spoke of the challenges of playing in Guyana.
“It’s great to see us coming together to raise funds for the countries that were affected by the hurricanes,” Johnson said.
Emrit added: “It is always difficult to come to Guyana and play against Guyana no matter what team they put up in the park, so we need to come out and give a good showing of ourselves.
“We have a lot of guys who have played international cricket and who have played in leagues around the world, and it always difficult to come and put this team together, but as experienced players we are professional and hopefully we can give a good showing of ourselves and most importantly give the crowd a good showing,” the Trinidadian said.
The initative is the second of its kind in the region following similar efforts organised in Trinidad last weekend where the Twin-Island republic’s cricket team took on an All-Star lineup to raise funds for relief efforts.
Guyanese are encouraged to go out and support the initiative with tickets for the match costing $2000 for stands and $1500 for the grass mound for fans to see an exciting affair.
Apart from Emrit, the Caribbean All-Stars will be represented by Lendl Simmons, Dwayne Smith, Andre Fletcher and Nicolas Pooran who will carry the weight of the batting while veterans Fidel Edwards and Sulieman Benn are expected to be the highlight with the ball.
For Guyana, it is an added opportunity for young guns Sherfane Rutherford, Chandrapaul Hemraj and Keemo Paul while Jonathon Foo, Gajanand Singh and Ronsford Beaton are expected to play major roles for the host.
Guyana All-Stars: Leon Johnson (Captain), Robin Bacchus, Sherfane Rutherford, Jonathon Foo, Gajanand Singh, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Anthony Bramble, Keemo Paul, Romario Shepherd, Ricardo Adams, Christopher Barnwell, Veerasammy Permaul, Steven Jacobs, Ronsford Beaton, Ramal Lewis.
The Caribbean All-Stars: Rayad Emrit (Captain), Lendl Simmons, Dwayne Smith, Andre Fletcher, Nicolas Pooran, Kjorn Ottley, Kevin Cooper, Keswick Williams, Jevon Searles, Fidel Edwards, Sulieman Benn, Lennox Cush, Joshua Wade, Andre Stoll, Romaine Maniram.
