Sunil Ambris takes another step

Young Vincentian cricketer Sunil Ambris has travelled up another rung, in his quest to make the senior West Indies team.

The 21-year-old Ambris is on a 14-member team which heads out this week for Sri Lanka, to engage their counterparts in three unofficial tests and three One Day matches.{{more}}

Ambris, who represented the West Indies at the Under-15 and Under-19 levels earlier this year, was selected to the Sagicor High Performance team, which opposed Bangladesh A here in the Caribbean.

Ambris, who made his first class debut for the Windwards earlier this year in the regional 4-day tournament, scored a century (114) against Guyana at the National Cricket Stadium in Providence, Guyana.

He went on to score 102 in the final against Jamaica at the Beausejour Cricket Stadium.

Along with his two centuries, the right-handed batsman notched up two half centuries.

Ambris, who plays for local club General Guardian Saints, is also an accomplished wicket-keeper, and has represented the UWI Vice-Chancellor’s, the Combined Campuses and Colleges in the regional 20/20 competition and most recently, the St Lucia Zouks in the Caribbean Premier League.

One who started as an opening batsman, but who has recently dropped to the middle order, Ambris is the youngest and least experienced member of the regional team, as several of his team mates have represented the West Indies in tests, One Day Internationals and T20 Internationals or a combination of two or all three formats.

Among those with test experience are Kirk Edwards (17), Shane Shillingford (16), Kraigg Braithwaite (14), Davendra Bishoo (11), Shannon Gabriel (9), Assad Fudadin and Jermaine Blackwood (3), Chadwick Walton (2), while Nikita Miller and Sheldon Cottrell have each played a solitary test match.

The regional team will be captained by Carlos Braithwaite, who has represented the West Indies in lone ODI, as well as a single T20.

Completing the team are Andre Fletcher, who has 15 ODI’s and 21 T20’s to his name; and Miguel Cummins – one ODI.

The management team includes Sir Vivian Richards (technical director), Lockhart Sebastian (manager), Vasbert Drakes and Graeme West (coaches), Oba Gulston (physiotherapist), Neval Grazette (fitness trainer) and Dexter Augustus (video analyst)

The first test is set for October 11 to 14; the second October 18 to 21 and the third takes place October 25 to 28.

The limited over matches are carded for November 1, 3 and 5.(RT)