Inter-zone cricket get Courts $22,000

THIS year’s National Inter-Zone Cricket got a $22,000 boost from five-time sponsors Courts. Action in the eight-team series will be contested in two groups, with defending champions UWI in the  “A” Division along with North, North East and Tobago. The  “B” Division comprise  South, South East, Central and a British Gas Under-17 XI starting next week, with the finals scheduled for May 31. At the launch of the series at the National Cricket Centre, Balmain, Couva, yesterday, Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board administrative manager Rambhai Patel received the $22,000 sponsorship cheque from Courts regional manager Bernadette Ramrattan.

Ramrattan, addressing the gathering which included TTCB chief executive officer Alloy Lequay, pointed out that the West Indies team “has been infused with a number of younger players, not unlike yourselves, who have successfully made their mark on the regional team. “These annual tournaments not only prepare you for a position on the national team but also to become better individuals and world class players.” She noted, Trinidad and Tobago are currently experiencing a cricketing high at the present moment and this is a credit to the splendid performance of  Brian Lara, who reclaimed the world record individual Test score within recent months.

Ramrattan said: “Interest in cricket is at the highest possible level in Trinidad and Tobago at the moment because of the recent accomplishment of world record holder Lara, whose monumental innings of 400 not out against England during the recent tour of the Caribbean, has rewrittem  history for the second time in ten years.” The Courts series is aimed at allowing players of the various zones, apart from the those taking part in the National Cricket League, the opportunity to play at the highest level, with the sole purpose of addressing the selectors to gain national selection.

Lequay also addressed the gathering, claiming charitable organisations like the TTCB could not survive without the sponsorship of corporate citizens like Courts, and praised their continuing support. He pointed out that the Courts sponsorship of the inter-zonal series caters for the less recognised  players from the various zones in the country. He told the players, “this is an opportunity for you to show off your talent and skills so that you could catch the eyes of the selectors and secure a place on the national team.”