Sampath expects T&T to win Regional tourney

Manager of the national under-19 cricket team Roland Sampath thinks that the Trinidad and Tobago outfit will lift this year’s regional crown. The T&T boys will leave on July 26 for the tournament that bowls off on July 28 in Barbados. Sampath who has an impressive record as manager of the Under-19 team said: “We have some very good players in our ranks and we are going to do well in this tournament. As a matter of fact I expect to go on and win this tournament because we have the quality. “We have players like Jovan Ali, who played a wonderful hand for us in last year’s tournament, as well as Ewart Nicholson who scored heavily in local cricket this season. “Added to these guys we have players like Anthony Simmons, the captain Vikash Mohan and the wicketkeeper/batsman Nicholas Pooran.” 

 

Sampath said he was not worried of the fact that the matches will be played on the Barbadian pitches that normally suits the fast bowlers. “Our attack is spin-based but we have quality spinners and they should do well on any surface. “We don’t have tearaway fast bowlers but the guys are pretty good and they will do a job for us.” T&T finished second in the league and limited overs tournaments last year. Yesterday the team will continue preparations with a training session at the National Cricket Centre (NCC) in Balmain, Couva. The players will round off their preparations on Monday and Tuesday, when the TTCB hosts a mental preparation camp with Dolly and Associates before the team flies off on July 26 for the tournament.