After the 2020 season was called off, Nand Persaud Company Limited has jump started the Berbice Cricket Board’s plans for the 2021 season after the rice company renewed its sponsorship for the female T20 tournament Thursday.
This follows the first sponsorship for the next year which was made by Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha for an Under-15 tournament.
According to a release from the board, BCB President, Hilbert Foster, visited the company and engaged in a discussion with the company’s Marketing Executive, Devesh Persaud.
From those discussions, it was decided that the tournament would be contested by defending champions, Rose Hall Town Metro, West Berbice and New Amsterdam/Canje on a round-robin basis.
According to the release, Foster proudly stated the BCB is the only county board to organise cricket for its female cricketers. The BCB president added that great effort would be made to play two more tournaments in 2021 for females as the board continues to invest heavily in female cricket. Additionally, the BCB would also seek to arrange matches for the female team to play across Guyana.
“Another major plan is to have the powerful Metro Female team play a Rest of Berbice Team during the finals of the historic Semi Professional League for an attractive prize package,” the release informed.
With the BCB placing special emphasis on education as part of its developmental programme, one female cricketer will also receive financial assistance towards her educational career.
The Nand Persaud and Company 20/20 tournament will begin early in the new year with matches expected to be played at the Area H Ground, Rose Hall Canje and Hopetown.
Among the players expected to be on show are West Indies players, Shemaine Campbelle, Erva Giddings, Sheneta Grimmond, Shabiki Gajnabi and Tremayne Smartt.
Other players such as Plaffiana Millington, Dian Prahald, Sherica Campbelle, Kantana Mentore, and Marian Samaroo are also expected to turn out.
At the end of the tournament, the Berbice selectors will select the Inter-County team which will participate in an intense preparation camp with head coach Winston Smith.
The BCB president expressed gratitude to the company for coming on board for the third successive year and assured that the tournament would be well organized.
Meanwhile, Persaud noted that his company was delighted to support Berbice cricket as it was impressed with the work of the board and its efforts to develop female cricket even more.
Also, another three youth cricketers from the West Berbice area have benefitted from the work of the board under its Patron Fund.
The youths, drawn from cricket clubs in Bush Lot Village received cricket gear which was donated by Patron Vickram Bharrat, Minister of Natural Resources.
Two players received a pair of batting gloves while one received a pair of batting pads. Over the last 30 months, over 200 youths have benefitted from donations of cricket gear, uniforms and bicycles while others have received educational materials including school bags, stated the BCB.
Foster also disclosed that the assistance programme is expected to be expanded shortly while dozens of youths would receive more cricket gear in a joint project with former West Indies opener Clayton Lambert.
