High hopes for female cricketers

Coach of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Women’s Cricket team, Cleton Burnett, is confident that his team will improve greatly on its last position in the 2007 outing, and they are backing themselves to regain the West Indies title.{{more}}

St. Vincent and the Grenadines will be among eight countries vyeing for the league title of the senior West Indies Women’s Competition, which opens in St. Lucia tomorrow, Saturday, August 16.

Burnett is pinning his confidence on the allround strength of the fourteen member team.

“I am pretty confident with the team; our batting and bowling are good”, Burnett said.

He thought that the top six batsmen can hold their own, which will be crucial to the team’s title chase.

“In addition, our fitness is pretty good, and the players are supportive of the captain, and that is a big plus for the team”, Burnett added.

“In saying all this, my only concern is if they can stay disciplined and apply themselves in their batting and bowling”, Burnett stated.

He welcomed the return of Captain Geneille Greaves, who missed the last tournament because of studies, while Clea Hoyte was unavailable for the 2007 version.

Burnett also said that the inclusion of former Guyanese player Indomatie Goordial-John was a boost to his team’s batting.

Stating that their mission was two fold, Burnett stated that their primary goal was to recapture the title, last won by this country in 2006, and secondly to put at least six players on the West Indies team.

“We have set ourselves goals, and winning the title is foremost in our minds”, the coach said.

Originally slated for Jamaica, the tournament was shifted to St. Lucia because of flight problems, mainly for the Guyanese.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines opens its campaign against Jamaica tomorrow, then faces Barbados on Sunday, and engages Grenada next Monday.

The Vincentians meet Guyana next Wednesday, the hosts St. Lucia on Thursday, and Dominica on Friday.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines closes out its run against arch rival Trinidad and Tobago next Saturday.

Genita Lewis is the St. Vincent and the Grenadines team’s Manager. (RT)