Dear Editor,
The Guyana Amazon Warriors (GAW) lost the finals of the CPL T20 on Saturday, October 12, 2020; so what! For weeks following the commencement of the tournament, the buzz was all about the GAW with their chicken curry brand vs. the curry chicken brand associated with the Trinidad Knight Riders (TKR). Such was the anticipation, that before the Barbados Tridents (BT) walloped the TKR, many folks were expecting a “chicken curry vs curry chicken” finals. After all the GAW won all 11 of its 11 games before the finals and TKR had a well-stocked collection of talent.
But cricket is like politics, there are games of great uncertainty. Speculation has no place in the arena. All that matters is great captaincy, great eyesight, great fitness, great preparation, and the right attitude. When BT chose to bat, it was an excellent strategy that immediately placed the GAW at a disadvantage. It is much easier to put up a tall score than chase a score under pressure. The second half of the game always has more pressure and many are also less fresh.
A casual perusal of social media sites will illustrate that the GAW had a loyal following including me. This team has brought great happiness to our people in Guyana in a time of much political sadness and economic turbulence. It was the Aishwarya Rai moment on the big screen where her superb dancing skills cause many to forget the daily trials and tribulations of blackouts, bills to pay and the daily act of just living in a very challenging environment. What I saw at the Guyana Stadium was a happy and united people. So irrespective of the loss in the finals, the GAW has done more positively for the mental psyche of the Guyanese than any other existing institution in the land of many waters. So for me, the boys in the GAW Team are heroes. So I want to congratulate Dr. Bobby Ramroop, his management team and all in the leadership for sticking with this franchise. You would have done more for the happiness of the Guyanese people than even this promise of cash transfers of some of the oil revenues.
In trying to understand the above and other similar views, I relied upon how people from all strata of the society engaged, collaborated and enjoyed each other’s company at the Providence Stadium which I believe should be renamed the Bharrat Jagdeo stadium for his vision of building it in the first place. Actually watching former President Jagdeo and Presidential Candidate Irfaan Ali walk among the thousands at the Stadium, without an army of bodyguards and interacting with the people of all ages, all ethnicities, all gender, was rather heartwarming to me. Why? This is how it ought to be – the servants of the people must always be among the people sharing their real moments.
So, let us embrace the loss in the finals, this GAW team did create many positive opportunities for our people over the last few weeks. It causes people like me to make that mental shift that I needed. It reinforced in many of our minds that Guyana is home and it is where we must spend the rest of our lives. It causes us all to interact as one people – a united Guyanese people. It brought great fun to the hearts of many of our people – I was told 14,000 in the ground when they played the Patriots and many thousands more glued to the TV sets in their homes.
One must be vigilant and wary of the false position that the loss was heart-rending for our people. It was not, we still love our warriors. I personally will continue to measure the GAW over the entire tournament and 11-0 was a fantastic record. So what if it changed to 11-1? The aggregate fun from 11-0 was greater than any sorrows from 11-1.
Yours faithfully,
Sasenarine Singh
