The scene is set for a wonderful afternoon of cricket, as the T&T Red Force armed with thousands of red-clad supporters will look to blow away the Combine Campuses and Colleges (CCC) to book a place in the semi-finals of the Nagico Regional Super50 tournament.When the umpires call play at 2 pm, at the mecca of local cricket, Queen's Park Oval, it promises to be an all-out war.T&T has revenge on their minds going into this clash, as the CCC knocked out a red-hot Red Force at the semi-final stage of last year's tournament. T&T had won six games on the trot before that clash and was sent packing.
Today, they go into this clash third in Group B behind the CCC who are leading with seven points and Barbados with six. T&T needs to win today to assure themselves a place in the semis and the local boys are taking nothing for granted.Former captain and wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin says the time is now for the Red Force to show their worth: "Well, it's a must-win situation and we to show up with our best game. The win against the Leewards was good but the CCC is a stronger team as they have good players in there."We are looking to Ravi Rampaul and Sunil Narine to give us that edge, as they are looking in good form. We also need one of the top four batsmen to bat through the innings and give us a big hundred."All in all we are looking to give a good show, weather permitting, as we look to top up our skills against the CCC."
All-rounder Rayad Emrit who has been in good form is looking to be amongst the wickets again. "The mood in the camp is upbeat at the moment. We have no time to relax, the CCC is a good team and we need to be at the top of our game."CCC is a good bowling unit, they showed that they could bowl out teams as they did to us last year, so it is critical that our batsmen show up."
Looking at his own form, he said: "I am confident with my form at the moment and looking to contribute to the team. The guys are all ready for this clash and we are just focusing on this game today, trying to get past it and then unto the semis."
TEAMS:
Trinidad & Tobago: Dwayne Bravo (captain), Adrian Barath, Evin Lewis, Lendl Simmons, Darren Bravo, Jason Mohammed, Denesh Ramdin (wicket-keeper), Rayad Emrit, Sunil Narine, Ravi Rampaul, Imran Khan, Yannick Ottley, Shannon Gabriel, Kevon Cooper; Kelvin Williams (coach).
Combined Campuses & Colleges: Steven Jacobs (captain), Anthony Alleyne, Ryan Austin, Kyle Corbin, Akeem Dewar, Kavem Hodge, Kyle Mayers, Kristopher Ramsaran, Wayne Morgan, Shacaya Thomas, Raymon Reifer, Chadwick Walton (wicket-keeper), Kesrick Williams, Floyd Reifer (player/coach).