$35,000 Fruta night cricket May 9

WINNERS of the second annual Fruta Cricket Festival will receive $15,000 while the runners-up will take home $7,500.

The festival organised by All Sports Promotions and sponsored by S M Jaleel and Company Limited makers of Fruta Drinks will once again be contested under floodlights at the Ato Boldon Stadium from May 9. Eight teams from the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board of Control Division One and Two competitions will be vying for top honours. Defending champions CLICO Preysal and last year’s runners-up FCB Clarke Road United are drawn in separate groups and each of the four teams will play three preliminary matches. Preysal head Group One which also comprise Queen’s Park, Caroni Wanderers and British American Aranguez.

In Group Two are FCB Clarke Road United, Ceramic MerryBoys, TransBrokerage Couva Sports and Low Cost Munroe Road. At the media launch at the company’s Biljah Road, Chaguanas, offices, which was attended by former Sports Minister Manohar Ramsaran, senior national selector Roland Sampath and All Sport Promotions director Anthony Harford, S M Jaleel’s regional Brand Manager Courtney Wint pledged the company’s financial support which is worth $35,000 overall. There has been a substantial increase from $12,000 to $15,000 for the winner’s prize. The increase for the runners-up goes from $6,000 to $7,500. Losing semi-finalists will each receive $2,000, an increase of $500 from last year. Winners of each preliminary round match will collect $500.

There is also an overall Most Valuable Player award of $500 and a cricket bat, while the Best Wicketkeeper will be presented with $250 along with a wicketkeeping kit. As a special incentive, there will be a Most Promising Under-21 Player award and a free Fruta drink to patrons attending each night’s action. Added to this, there will be  three hampers for lucky patrons. First match on each night is expected to begin at 6.30 pm, with the second at 9.30 pm.

Fruta Cricket Festival Fixtures.
May 9:  Queen’s Park CC vs British American Aranguez- 6.30 pm.
Clico Preysal vs Caroni Wanderers- 9.30 pm.
May 14: FCB Clarke Road vs Munroe Road-6.30 pm.
Merry Boys vs TransBrokerage Couva Sports- 6.30 pm.
May 15: Queen’s Park CC vs Wanderers
Preysal vs Aranguez
May 16: MerryBoys vs Munroe Road
Clarke Road vs Couva Sports.
May 22: Munroe Road vs Couva Sports
Clarke Road vs Merry Boys
May 23: Aranguez vs Wanderers
Preysal vs QPPC
May 29: Semi-Finals
Winner of 2 vs Runner-up of 1
Winner of 1 vs Runner-up of 2
May 30: Final