'I Don't Support Anything That Divides'
Sat, Sep 13, '03
SEAN DEVERS interviews Ramnaresh Sarwan
Many things have changed in the life of Guyana's Ramnaresh Sarwan since the twenty-two year-old West Indies vice-captain first came to prominence with centuries for the Stella Marris Primary school in the schools under-12 cricket competition in 1992.
Sarwan hails from a small Island in the Essequibo River called Wakanaam but moved to the capital Georgetown as a pre-teen and learnt his cricket at the Famous Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC), the home of the Bourda ground.
His talent was obvious from an early age and he performed outstandingly with both bat and ball for Guyana at the regional under-19 level from 1995-1998. Sarwan was soon playing his first match for the Guyana senior team against Trinidad and Tobago in the 1995 Shell Sandals one-day final at Bourda.
"We were going really well with Keith (Semple) and Shiv (Chanderpaul) batting sweetly. All of a sudden I had my pads on to bat and we were in big trouble. Rajendra Dhanraj took a hat-trick including my wicket and, in almost darkness we lost the match," Sarwan remembers.
The next year he became the youngest West Indies first class player when he made his first class debut against Barbados at Albion in the Red Stripe Cup and since then his career has taken off.
Sarwan was in the West Indies under-19 and the regional 'A' teams to South Africa in 1998 before making his test debut with an unbeaten half-century against Pakistan in Barbados two years later.
His first test ton came last year against Bangladesh in late 2002 before he again the reached the three-figure mark against the mighty Australians in Antigua this year.
"Of course my century against Bangladesh was special to me. Who cares if it was against one of the weaker test teams. You know how long I have been trying to get a test century and just falling in the eighties and nineties?"
"This hundred is important to me because it was made against the best team in the world," said Sarwan after his match winning ton against Australia in the final test of the 2003 Caribbean tour.
Sarwan, a devout Hindu, has had to overcome lots of hurdles in his life.
His childhood girlfriend Lisa died when he was on a tour with the West Indies team and although he returned home for the funeral and later re-joined the team, Lisa's passing affected him for some time after that.
"I would sometimes be in my room on tour and think of her and cry. My team mates were always there for me and without making excuses I think her death affected me a bit when I had that miserable tour to Australia," Ronnie disclosed.
A fighting half-century in the last test of the Australian series revived his confidence which was lifted even higher with a very good 2001 regional first class season during which he scored his first hundred for Guyana.
"I believe that tough times don't last long but tough people do. I have had some hard times but you got to work hard never give up. Look, in the 1998 under-19 competition I struggled for runs and was not selected on the All-star team. I was disappointed but I knew it was up to me to work harder on my game which I did."
"My first tour to Australia and facing Bret Lee also made me realize that the hardest thing was not reaching the top but doing enough to stay there. Those little things have made me a stronger person," Sarwan said.
Sarwan's celebrity has come with a price. As much as he is willing to do interviews and chat with fans, he has to be wary of the pitfalls along the way. "I like going to clubs and having fun but you have got to set your priorities right. For me cricket is my priority. No one forced me to choose cricket as my career so it is now up to me to do the things to ensure I don't regret that decision," Sarwan remarked with a smile.
"I have not changed much now that I am a test player. But I now know that as a public figure you have got to be very careful of what you do because fame and success can also have its disadvantages."
"Sometimes I go somewhere and I want to spend some time alone, but you can't ignore people if they come up to say 'hi' or get an autograph. Sometimes you can't talk to everyone or you are real tired after a match so I hope people understand that we are not playing a big shot or anything like that," Sarwan explained.
While a lot has changed for the Essequibian who captains his adopted home Demerara at the Inter-County level, one thing remains the same -- his attitude towards life.
"I feel we are all one people with different views, cultures, religions and so on and cricket has taught me a lot about how a simple sport can unite some many West Indian people with so many differences in their lives."
"We (the players) know it hurts the fans when they see us lose and I can tell you it hurts us even more. We have a young team and we are working hard to win more matches and we need the fans to rally round the West Indies team," Sarwan pleaded.
Sarwan is proud to be Guyanese and West Indian and is always a team man and revealed that he was disappointed that all sorts of rumors are circulating about his commitment to West Indies cricket and the people of the region.
The West Indies batsman was selected to captain a team in a game in Guyana between a Berbice team and a Demerara team for "Indians only" but missed the game because he was on vacation in the USA.
The Guyana Indian Heritage Association (GIHA), which organised the match and excluded all the other races in the multi-ethnic Guyana society, has since demanded a public apology from Sarwan for missing the game.
Sarwan looks at this episode in his life as just another hurdle to be crossed when you are a public figure.
"As a representative of the Guyana cricket team and the West Indies vice-captain, I don't support anything that divides us as people, especially in a country like Guyana where I expect the support of all Guyanese when I am on and off the field," Sarwan declared.
"When I was told about the match I was under the impression that it was just a normal match and I did not know that the Organizers were involved in politics. I said I would play because I wanted to play as much cricket as possible before the Red Stripe Bowl and then I missed my flight in the USA. I never signed any contract to play any match like this and I am sure many of the other players were not told in detail about the true nature of the match," he explained.
"I am proud of my culture but I believe cricket, which is our national sport, should be used to help unite us as a people not divide us more... of course, that is just my opinion," Sarwan explained.
He stressed that since he was growing up his parents always told him to always do what he felt was the right thing without being afraid of what other people say.
The stylish right hander is looking forward to captaining Demerara in the inter-county competition and to use the experience to make him a better captain if he is needed for the job at the higher level.
"If selected as captain I will be looking forward to the challenges of leading Guyana in the Red Stripe Bowl because the only way I can improve as a leader is by gaining the experience of leading," Sarwan said.
He feels that Guyana has a strong young team and should do well in the regional one-day competition which commence on October 1st but added that he expected all the other teams to be competitive.
Sarwan, with 2,127 runs from 34 test matches at an average of 38.67 with two hundreds and 16 fifties, feels if former West Indies captain Carl Hooper returns to play in the Bowl it will be a good thing.
"If Hoops plays he will motivate and inspire the guys like he has done over the past few seasons. You learn so much from Hoops apart from the contribution he himself makes with the bat or ball. I hope he comes back for the Bowl," Sarwan said.
Already with lots of experience with 5,271 first class runs from 98 matches including nine centuries and 33 fifties at an average of 35.61, Sarwan feels the West Indies should do well in Zimbabwe but feels the their biggest test will be in South Africa as they attempt to avenge the white wash of their last tour to that country.
Sarwan's one-day record is even more impressive. Since making his debut against England in 2000, he has scored 1,491 runs from 44 matches with one century and seven fifties at an average of 48.80.
* Sean Devers is a radio cricket commentator and cricket journalist for the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC). He also writes for for the Stabroek News in Guyana.
