ST JOHN’S, Antigua, CMC – St Vincent and the Grenadines will host the marquee men’s Rising Stars Under19 Championship this July, Cricket West Indies said Wednesday.
The tournament, which serves as a pathway to the international platform, will run from July 2 to August 1, and will be a combination of the red ball and 50-over white ball formats.
SVG also hosted the tournament last year.
CWI also announced Trinidad and Tobago will stage the other two Rising Stars championships, the men’s Under-17s running from August 10 to September 1 and the women’s Under-19s from July 2-16.
“These age group tournaments are of paramount importance, and we want to ensure the players get maximum opportunities and exposure,” said CWI’s director of cricket, Jimmy Adams.
“Many of our current and former international players have graduated from these tournaments and we continue to see this as the ‘nursery’ for West Indies cricket.
“With over 250 teenagers due to participate in these championships, this is the ideal platform for them to launch their careers and the tournaments will allow for ongoing talent identification and development of our best young players.”
For the first time this year, the men’s Under-17 Championship will feature three rounds of two-day red ball matches, in addition to the five rounds of white-ball games.
Leeward Islands are the reigning men’s Under-19 champions while Windward Islands are defending Under-17 champions.
Guest side United States won the women’s Under-19 tournament last year.