CPL a tremendous success!

Tue Aug 27, 2013

Editor: Cricket was known to be a gentleman’s game, but during the past decades there have been so many reports and investigations of match fixing which led to the suspension of a few players from India, Pakistan as well as other countries — all because of the mighty dollar.{{more}}

Cricket fans in the Caribbean are wondering if the Guyana Amazon Warriors’ crushing defeat by the Jamaican Tallawahs was in fact a genuine victory for the Chris Gayle squad or if it was “a sell out”. Several reasons were advanced for the “suspicion,” since it was said that this T20 tournament was organized not to promote the gentleman’s game, but it was for financial gain for the organizers, the players and for other lucrative benefits for the sponsors.

Among the questions asked is why established batsmen for the Warriors such as James Franklin and Ramnaresh Sarwan did not bat earlier. In fact, the latter, who is the skipper and a top notch batsman, did not even go to the crease to bat, and spinner Sunil Narine was sent in so early in the innings, as well as pacer Chris Barnwell and wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin.

What was even more disturbing was the erratic manner in which Krishmar Santokie bowled against his countrymen. There were so many wides which resulted in 33 runs scored off his bowling. In his final order, he conceded 20 runs with five wides. His over was extended to 11 deliveries. The Jamaican bowled extremely well during the tournament, but Saturday night he was way off target. A few pundits say that he should not have been called upon to bowl at the crucial stage, because his country knew his type of bowling. It is also surprising that left arm spinner Verasammy Permaul was not asked to bowl.

Regardless of the adverse comments and observation of some of the disappointed cricket fans, the Caribbean Premier League was a tremendous success. There were sold out crowds at all the matches, be it in Guyana, Antigua, Barbados, Jamaica or Trinidad and Tobago and the cricketing greats who witnessed or or were affiliated with the tournament, such as Sir Gary Sobers (the Ambassador), Sir Vivian Richards (coach of the Antigua squad), and Rickey Ponting ,who played his last match to end his illustrious career, were in high praise for the CPL.

Oscar Ramjeet