BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Aware that star-studded Trinidad and Tobago Red Force are heavy favourites to win the Regional Super50, Combined Campuses and Colleges Marooners are already plotting perhaps the biggest upset of the tournament, when the two teams meet in today’s second semi-final at Kensington Oval.
Red Force lost just once in finishing second in Group A at home while Marooners exceeded expectations to win Group B, which included the likes of Barbados Pride and Jamaica Scorpions.
Marooners skipper Carlos Brathwaite said yesterday his side were not intimidated by the prospect of facing the tournament favourites, and just needed to execute properly in order to win.
“David did kill Goliath so if we can take any heart from that, it’s about doing what we need to do on a consistent basis,” said Brathwaite, who has been an inspirational figure in the Marooners’ run.
“Obviously with a team such as Trinidad and with the experienced players and quality players that they have, we have to do it for a much longer period of time, there will be less margin for error but we see that as a challenge.
“When we started, before the tournament and then after our first game … not being able to chase 130, everyone wrote us off but we stuck together as team and as a family and we came out the other side … leading the group. “For us, it’s not about getting too carried away with whom we’re playing against, it’s just about assessing conditions, assessing obviously the opposition but more importantly, covering our bases, ticking our boxes and doing well what we did to get here.”
Brathwaite will hope for a repeat of the 2013 tournament when CCC stunned Red Force in the semi-final, also at the Oval, to reach their only final to date.
And with wins over last season’s losing finalists, Pride, and Scorpions, under their belt, Marooners are confident of going all the way.
“When we got together we had one clear goal. Our motto … was to play good cricket but also to earn the respect of our peers and I think we’ve done just that,” said Brathwaite.
“To top a side including Barbados at home and Jamaica with the cricket they started out playing, was an achievement in itself. It’s now for us to concentrate on what we did well to get here and then ultimately to do that for the next game – potentially two games – and look to win the cup.”
Red Force, meanwhile, will be hoping to avoid any hiccups and convert their status of favourites into a performance that gets them a place in Sunday’s final.
They boast the likes of captain Denesh Ramdin, along with the Bravo brothers, Dwayne and Darren, Kieron Pollard, Lendl Simmons and Sunil Narine, constituting a virtual dream team.
But Ramdin said despite his side’s strength, they were well aware of the danger posed by the Marooners and would be leaving nothing to chance.
“They’ve been playing some good cricket so far, we’ve been following their progress in the tournament,” said the former West Indies Test captain.
“They have some good talent in there, they have some guys from Trinidad that we know and some Bajan guys who we have done some research on as well so it’s going to be good game, providing we get some good weather and a proper cricket pitch at the Oval.”
Red Force are 12-time champions but are without success since 2016 when they beat Barbados in the final at Queen’s Park Oval.
