Sarwan plays in Guyana 20/20 warm-up
Sun, Feb 3, '08
by SEAN DEVERSFormer West Indies spinners Neil McGarrell and Mahendra Nagamootoo grabbed three wickets each on a flat Albion track in Berbice on Sunday to spearhead defending Stanford 20/20 champions Guyana-led by Test player Ramnaresh Sarwan to a 12-run victory against Berbice in their second practice match in preparation for this year's tournament in Antigua.
Esaun Crandon hit four ours and a six in an aggressive 23-ball 30 as the Nationals, asked to bat first in sunny conditions, slipped from 84-2 in 1 overs to 133 all out in 20 overs with former National under-19 leg-spinner Davendra Bishoo taking 3-18.
Contrary to published reports that the 27-year-old Sarwan was in hiding and would not play the game following reports that suspicious men were seen in his street asking for him. There was even a rumor here that the right-hander had left the country.
Sarwan played in Sunday’s match and made 23 from 20 balls after he and his girlfriend traveled close to 100 miles from the City to Berbice along the East Coast and West Berbice road ways where protest actions were staged earlier this week following last Saturday’s brutal killing of 11 persons including five children in the East Coast Village of Lusigan by criminals.
Sarwan who led the West Indies in a single Test in England last year before injuring his shoulder, confirmed that he was told that suspicious looking men were seen in his area on Thursday and that a report was made by a worker at his East Bank Demerara home.
He however said that he was not in hiding and was keenly looking forward to Guyana’s title defense in Antigua this month and a return to International cricket when Sri Lanka tour the Caribbean next month.
“I am not in hiding….I am playing cricket here so I guess everyone should know where I am. I got a phone call on Thursday and I went home to check it out. Eleven persons were shot dead last Saturday and at this time I guess you have to be extra careful when you hear things. I am also recovering from an ankle injury so it was really a combination of reasons why I did not play the first practice game on Friday,” the stroke player explained.
"You are hearing lots of rumors about many things here so you have to be careful but my focus is on playing cricket and captaining my country as we hope to retain our Stanford title. I hope everything is soon back to normal and I would like to encourage everyone to behave in a responsible manner at this time and strive for peace and unity,” He added.
Sarwan said he did not see any reason why he should be in any danger since he ‘gets on well’ with most people, is not involved in politics or any illegal activities and is always proud to represent his county as a cricketer. He also extended his condolences to the relatives of those who lost their lives in Saturday’s tragedy.
