Barthley: Windies U-19s Well Prepared

Sun, Jan 25, '04

The West Indies Under 19 cricket team is scheduled to depart the Caribbean on Sunday for a short preparatory tour of Sri Lanka before heading off to Bangladesh for the International Cricket Council's Under 19 World Cup. The team flies out from Piarco tonight at 8.40pm on BA 900 for London and connection to Sri Lanka.

At a press briefing in Trinidad on Saturday, WICB chief operations officer Zorol Barthley said that the team has been well prepared not only physically but psychologically and paying attention to etiquette.

"There is life after cricket and everyone of these young men is not necessarily going to be a professional cricketer. We have been intent on making them not only better cricketers but also better people," Barthley said.

Manager Roland Sampath said he was please with the level of readiness of the team. He said they have been playing together since the Under 19 competition in September last year, and have had camps together at which they have become bonded as no other team leaving these parts have been. In fact the players had been at a session at which they were being trained in handling the media among other things. He thanked the WICB for having done everything necessary to ensure the players are as well prepared as possible.

Dinesh Ramdin, captain of the team, was ?quietly confident that his team will bring back the championship trophy. We are as prepared as can be and have a level of experience that will be very helpful,? he said.

The World Cup begins on February 15 and runs through March 4.

Ramdin was a member of the West Indies Under 15 World Cup in New Zealand and was named Best Wicketkeeper of that series. He is pleased with the experience of several players who have already represented West Indies in World Cups. Berkley noted that it was part of the development thrust of the WICB as the youth are the future of the game.

Ramdin, Ravi Rampaul, Tishan Maharaj, Lendl Simmons have all played in World Cup before and have represented their country at first class level. Rampaul is with the West Indies team in South Africa and will leave SA on February 8, along with the South African team and will connect with the his Under-19 teammates in Bangladesh.

In Sri Lanka, West Indies are scheduled to play four warm-up matches against their Under 17?s and one against their Under 19?s. There will also be two warm-up matches in Bangladesh before the tournament begins.

West Indies Under 19 is in the same group as Ireland, Pakistan, and Papua New Guinea.

The team leaves with manager Roland Sampath, coach Clyde Butts, former West Indies and Guyana off-spinner and physiotherapist, Barbadian Phyllis Burnett.

Team: Dinesh Ramdin (capt), Kirk Edwards (vice-captain), Liam Sebastian, Ravi Rampaul, Lionel Baker, Mervin Matthew, Barry Yearwood, Assad Fudadin, Lendl Simmons, Tishan Maharaj, Xavier Marshall, Zamal Khan, Rishi Bachan, Jonathan Augustus.

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