ST JOHN’S, Antigua, CMC – Director of cricket, Jimmy Adams, does not see any fallout from playing the early stages of the first class season alongside Sri Lanka A’s tour of the Caribbean.
In fact, the former West Indies captain believes that with franchises set to lose players for the A-team series, younger players will be afforded opportunities they otherwise would not have had during the campaign, thus widening the player pool in the Caribbean.
“I think it’s an opportunity for players who may have not have had the opportunity if teams were at what we call full strength,” Adams pointed out.
“This is the reality of the global game today, just not in the Caribbean but worldwide. If you’re going to have the domestic tournament being played at the same time, especially if your domestic tournament covers x-amount of months, it’s hard to say you’re not going to have an overlap of A-team cricket or Test cricket or international cricket.
“It’s just a fact of global cricket scene … and we’re no different here.”
Sri Lanka A are set to arrive in the region shortly for three four-day “Tests” and as many one-dayers, in a tour running from October 11 to November 5.
The series will run parallel with the first two rounds of the regional first class season which gets underway October 26.
Adams said that his career had benefitted from such scenarios where he was able to stake his claim in first class cricket because of the absence of leading players to international duty.
“My experience in other countries having played and worked in South Africa, Zimbabwe and England is that is an opportunity,” Adams contended.
“Yes, you would see on paper that teams would be weaker but a lot of us – myself included – have been products of opportunities gained when senior players were away from home.
“I’ve played series in the Caribbean when the international players were away and yes, you say there is a weakening of teams but by the same token, a lot of us grabbed those opportunities and made very good use of them.”
He added: “I don’t look at it as a negative. It’s the way of the cricketing landscape these day and it’s opportunities for young players as far as I am concerned.”
Next year, England Lions are also scheduled to tour the Caribbean for three four-day “Tests” and three one-dayers, from February 5 to March 11, a series that is expected to coincide with the Regional Super50.
