Republic Bank Limited, the largest indigenous bank in the English-speaking Caribbean, has been announced as the new Title Sponsor and Official Bank of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL). The announcement was made by CPL Chief Executive Officer, Pete Russell, in a press conference held today in Port of Spain to launch the 2023 season of the T20 cricket tournament. Having previously sponsored the CPL as the Official Banking Partner since 2015, the Bank will now assume the League’s highest sponsorship profile for the next three (3) years.
Republic Bank has also been confirmed as a partner for the Women’s Caribbean Premier League (WCPL) which will return in 2023 for its second edition. The WCPL sees the best female cricketers from across the region and around the world showcase their skills in front of a huge global audience.
Pete Russell, CEO of the Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League, said: “Republic Bank are the perfect partner for the CPL and WCPL, a company that shares our passion for cricket and Caribbean culture. The CPL is a driver of economic growth and the creation of jobs, so having a financial group like Republic Bank as the title sponsor makes perfect sense. In addition, Republic Bank has a great track record of spreading the love of cricket across the region, something that is important to all of us at the CPL.”
South Africa and the West Indies played one of the most amazing games of cricket you will ever see at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Sunday.
In the second of three T20Is, the two teams combined for a record 517 runs including 81 boundaries and 35 sixes as the hosts needed just 18.5 overs to chase down a mammoth 258 set by the West Indies.
The catalyst behind the West Indies’ massive total was an innings from top-order batsman Johnson Charles that can only be described as special.
The 34-year-old right-hander, batting at number three, eclipsed Chris Gayle’s record for fastest T20I hundred for the West Indies, 47 balls against England at the 2016 ICC T20 World Cup, when he brought up his maiden T20I century off just 39 balls.
Charles eventually made 118 off 46 balls including 10 fours and 11 sixes. He said the key to his innings was understanding the conditions.
“You know as a batsman, with such a good pitch and such a small ground, that you don’t have to over-hit the ball. I think that was one of the key points that all the batsmen had in the back of their minds,” he said in a press conference after the game.
Unsolicitedly 10 years ago, I publicly lent some advice to the incoming president of the then governing body of West Indies cricket.
Needless to say, and knowing what I know about the then incoming president, my advice went unheeded. Whycliffe "Dave" Cameron does not do 'small fry'! Not that 10 years down the road, the CWI president-to-be needs my advice. More pointedly, he does not. But as one who campaigned for the position, I have some thoughts. They might not add up to a hill of beans. But for the last 10 years at least, I have been marinating them.
As I begin to write them, it's instructive that I am on the upper level of the Georgetown Cricket Club at the Bourda Cricket Ground in Guyana, watching two Under-15 teams — Berbice and Demerara — do battle in a 50-over match. Instructive to me indeed, because I now have more faith in, and get more satisfaction from, the future of West Indies cricket, than from its present. In fact, in medical parlance, the incoming CWI president might have to be a specialist in both early childhood development and palliative care. Because from where I sit, the best CWI can do with the top-level band of West Indies cricketers, is to make the rest of its days comfortable. And true to my manifesto, I was planning to put more emphasis into 'finder-schools' development. But forget about me.
The Mumbai Indians are champions of the inaugural season of the Tata Women’s Premier League after a seven-wicket win over the Delhi Capitals at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday.
The Capitals, who advanced to the final after finishing top-of-the-table in the league phase, made 131-9 off their 20 overs after winning the toss and batting first.
Captain Meg Lanning led the way with 35 while Shikha Pandey and Radha Yadav each made 27*.
Hayley Matthews was magnificent with the ball for Mumbai, picking up three wickets in her four overs while conceding only five runs. Issy Wong also continued her wicket-taking form with 3-42 from her spell.
ST JOHN’S, Antigua – Dr. Kishore Shallow and Azim Bassarath have been elected to the posts of President and Vice President respectively, of Cricket West Indies (CWI). They will serve two-year terms.
The election process was conducted as one of the key items on the agenda of the 24th Annual General Meeting of CWI, which was held on Saturday 25, March 2023 at the Coolidge Cricket Ground in Antigua.
Dr. Shallow said: “On behalf of Cricket West Indies, I sincerely thank the outgoing President Ricky Skerritt for his latest contribution to our beloved cricket. He has served with distinction and pride in one of the most challenging periods in our lifetime, the COVID-19 pandemic. His tenure has certainly moved us in the right direction.”
