It’s regional cricket time once again. That time of the year when Guyanese are often frustrated by the blight of rain. Thankfully, the Guyana Cricket Board in its wisdom has scheduled the first two rounds of this year’s West Indies Cricket Board sponsored regional four day cricket competition away from home.
And, it will be a double delight for those fans whose very existence rely on regional cricket competitions, as the competition will be a double round one.
The national senior team is set to leave these shores today as they hunt their first Regional title since 2002.
How will they fare?
That question will be answered over the next few weeks.
Looking back, though instead of ahead, the team did not fare too well in last year’s competition.
They went down to Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados and Jamaica.
The biggest margin of defeat was inflicted on the team by Barbados who won by an innings and 57 runs at the then spanking-new Kensington Oval.
Centuries in last year’s competition were recorded by opener Sewnarine Chattergoon (130), skipper Ramnaresh Sarwan (105*) and (150).
But then Guyana’s batting fell away and not another century was scored until Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Travis Dowlin battered the Combined Campuses and Colleges and the Windward Islands teams for 207 and 176 respectively.
No other batsman managed to see triple figures with Chattergoon (98) and Leon Johnson (94) coming the closest to the coveted three-figure mark.
This time around, there is no Chattergoon, Sarwan or Chanderpaul in the Dowlin-led, 13-man squad which was selected and encamped for two weeks.
And, as is the norm, Mother Nature did not even smile on the players during their two-week encampment and persistent rainfall left the coaches no choice but to concentrate on getting the players fit for 12 rounds of cricket.
And though a three-day practice game was scheduled for the National Stadium from Saturday to Monday, once again, that bugbear of local cricket – rain, reared its ugly head, leaving the players with a couple of hours on the pitch on the last day.
It means batsmen of the calibre of Krishna Arjune, Narsingh Deonarine, Royston Crandon and wicketkeeper Darwin Christian, would have to dig deep in their “bag” of experience and help bat the team to big totals.
Having toured New Zealand with the West Indies team even if he did not play a match, all eyes will be on Leon Johnson and it will be up to him not to disappoint.
With Dowlin steering the ship, the Guyana team should seek to turn around the fortunes of the team.
There is a question mark over Arjune, who is recuperating from a shoulder injury that plagued him during the latter half of 2007 and last year.
Christian is no rabbit with the bat but his shot selection often leaves a lot to be desired while he has shown signs of improvement behind the stumps.
The team also includes three, young talented players in Shemroy Barrington, Steven Jacobs and all-rounder Christopher Barnwell who will be looking to cement places in the team for when the big boys return.
The bowling may be of some concern to both Dowlin and coach Albert Smith as there is no Reon King, no Neil Mc Garrell, no Mahendra Nagamootoo, no Rayon Griffith and no Trevon Garraway.
But there is Davendra Bishoo who will be looking to continue where he started, when he took 5-29 against the Combined Campuses and Colleges team at the Providence Stadium last year.
He will be tasked with turning his right-arm, leg-spinners for 12 matches with support from left arm orthodox bowler Verasammy Permaul.
Esaun Crandon, Brendon Bess and Barnwell, will take care of the pace duties but the omission of Garraway seems a bit questionable.
Guyana will play their first match against the Windward Islands on Friday.
Cricket fans will recall that it was defeat to the Windwards in last year’s limited overs cricket competition which was also sponsored by the WICB, which effectively cost Guyana a semi-final spot.
Whether Dowlin and company will remember the sour taste of that defeat and are motivated enough to do anything about it, will be known sooner rather than later.
