The Covid-19 pandemic continued to have a negative impact on contact sports in Trinidad and Tobago in 2021 with no competition taking place, but Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB) president Azim Bassarath is hopeful that 2022 will be much brighter. And he says the TTCB will place a lot of emphasis on youth development going forward, in order to minimize the negative impact that continued restrictions are having on the next generation of athletes.
Local cricket was postponed to March 2020 due to the pandemic. However, Covid-19 vaccines arrived in early 2021, offering hope for a return to some sort of normalcy.
However the ban on local team sports continued last year, leaving the local cricket fraternity holding its breath for 2022.
Looking ahead to 2021, Bassarath said that while there were “trying times”, the last 12 months were not a total loss.
“We understand why we were not given permission to play our tournaments, but we were still given permission for the national teams to train and we were able to participate in the regional Super50 tournament, which we won convincingly without losing a single game, ” emphasized Bassarath.
The Kieron Pollard-led side, featuring veteran players Ravi Rampaul, Sunil Narine, Imran Khan, Lendl Simmons, Denesh Ramdin and Darren Bravo, were dominant throughout the tournament, but this was the only regional competition held by Cricket West Indies as the territories continued to fight the virus.
Bassarath noted that T&T players went on to feature in West Indies teams and around the world in T20 leagues. However, he expressed concern that the development of the next generation of players would have taken a major hit.
“I think Covid has affected sport in general in a very negative way. Absolutely no sports would have played and this would have affected the development of the sport and players in the country,” the TTCB chief explained.
“In cricket, we would have our challenges every time we restart, but the TTCB does not stand idly by. We have been constantly changing arrangements and putting things in place so that once permission is given, we would be ready to play competitive cricket. However, as we sit and talk now, no child below the age of 16 is participating in any (team) sport and this is a serious issue that could have long-term consequences,” added Bassarath.
“Our future in the sport depends on these young people,” he asserted.
“Our core program and age group competitions have been severely affected. I know there was a lot of expectation that sports would be allowed to resume soon and I look forward to that,” Bassarath said.
“I can say with certainty that the TTCB has everything in place to be able to start our programs to make sure that young people have the opportunity to enter the park and at least get involved in some sports activities in order to fulfill their potential,” he continued.
“We have plans and programs in place. Once permission is granted, we have planned a four-team U-23 tournament and we will also have similar U-16 and U-19 tournaments and this is because we want to have the best players in these age groups playing against each. others. We also have plans where after our National 50-over League tournament, a team will be selected to go to Tobago to play two matches. Also from the 50-over tournament, we want to select four teams from that to play a four-team tournament so that they can have the best players competing as part of the preparations for the 2022 Super50 tournament later in the year ,” Bassarath said.
“We also want to continue our InterZone tournaments—Under-13, Under-15, Under-17 and Under-19—and we already have dates for all the tournaments we have planned for next year,” he said.
“So we hope 2022 will be a better year for sports and our cricketers will get an opportunity to play cricket. We know that everyone, the players and the clubs, are eager to get back on the pitch, so we are awaiting permission from the government, which also has a responsibility to protect citizens,” Bassarath added.
The TTCB president also praised Red Force coach David Furlonge for involving some of the young players in the senior team’s training sessions throughout the year and said he was pleased to see some of them excelling during the Red Force trial matches. Red in November and early December. .
He expects more competition for places in the squad in the new year when the team accelerates its preparations for the four-day regional tournament that ends in February.
“I want to congratulate the coach for having the foresight to bring in some youngsters over the age of 19 and so on to engage with the senior players and it was very encouraging to see the performance of some of these young players,” said Bassarath. .
“The coach would have shown some of the names. We would have seen a lot of improvement in some of the players and I know there will be an increase in training in January in preparation for the four-day regionals starting in February, so the coach will have his work cut out for him and the selectors too in terms of selection best team available, but I’m very impressed so far with what I’ve seen from the youngsters. I have been to some of the test games and from what I have seen, the future of Trinidad and Tobago looks very bright indeed,” he added.
But at the same time, Bassarath pleaded with the national community to get vaccinated, which could speed up the timeline for the return of contact sports.
He also feels that hosting the 22-match U-19 Cricket World Cup in January could be a catalyst for a return to the field.
“This is an international tournament and we are very happy that at least one cricket will be played in Trinidad and from the impression we have, fully vaccinated spectators may be allowed, so if you want to see these games, please get vaccinated.” said Bassarath.
“It is important that the whole nation is vaccinated so that sports can resume as soon as possible. It’s a tournament that I think could encourage people to get the vaccine and could also pave the way to allow the sport to be played later in the year,” he added.
“We are living in difficult times and I want to urge people again to get vaccinated,” pleaded Bassarath. “It is important for us to fight the disease. Over the course of the year, we would have lost a few people to Covid and apart from Covid, we would have lost others, most recently an icon in sports administration and broadcasting in Tony Harford.”
Less than a week after he spoke to Express, the TTCB was again thrown into mourning following the death of former TTCB second vice-president Lalman Kowlessar, whom Bassarath hailed as an “icon”.
Kowlessar’s funeral was held at the National Cricket Center in Balmain Couva on Boxing Day.
“I would like to take this opportunity to express our deepest condolences to all the families and friends of all those who would have passed, Covid or otherwise. But it was indeed a very trying year and I look forward to a brighter year in 2022. I also want to express our gratitude to our sponsors who have supported us and continue to support us during this trying time,” said Bassarath.
