SPORTS
Jonathan Ramnansingh
SOUTH East Zone will begin the defense of their Scotiabank NextGen Under-15 cricket title against South when the 2023 edition of the youth development program kicks off on Wednesday.
The southern derby will be played at the Sancho Branch Road Recreation Ground, Princes Town, and features four fixtures in the opening round.
The Southeast Zone was undefeated when the tournament was held last season after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic.
However, the final against Central was severely disrupted by rain and eventually had to be called off after Southeast batting first reached 152 for eight after 32 overs, and six weather interruptions. The clash was eventually called off by the umpires and South East were crowned champions due to their winning record.
In addition, last year’s finalists Central also begin Wednesday against Southwest at Agostini Township Recreation Ground in Chase Village.
The North Zone will enjoy their home advantage at Queen’s Park Oval, Port of Spain, when they take on the North East in another key encounter, while the East Zone host Tobago at the National Cricket Center in Couva.
Peter Ghany, director of the Scotiabank Foundation said the success of the partnership with the TT Cricket Board is evidenced by the number of cricketers who have graduated to the Red Force national team.
“The ambition of the Scotiabank NextGen Cricket Development Program is to positively impact the lives of our young people. We are aiming to improve their educational and employment prospects so that they can adapt to changing circumstances and increase the likelihood of financial success,” said Ghany.
There will be three rounds of preliminary matches on February 1, 8 and 15 with the semi-finals on February 24 and the final on March 1. All matches are 50-overs per team and take place at the respective venues at 9.30am.
SCOTIABANK NEXTGEN UNDER 15 TOURNAMENT
Group A: East, North-East, Tobago, North
Group B: South, Central, Southeast, Southwest
Round 1 matches (February 1)
Tobago vs East, National Cricket Centre, Balmain
North East vs North, Queen’s Park Oval, Port-of-Spain
Central vs. Southwest, Residential Agostini Recreation Gd.
Southeast vs. South, Sancho Branch Road Recreation Gd.
