Guyanese fans crazy over CPL

Cricket starved fans in Guyana are going crazy now that the Limacol Caribbean Premier League (CPL)T20 tournament has reached their land. With the Amazon Warriors due to play the Red Steel last night at the Providence Stadium, the atmosphere outside the ground was electric. 

Fans started arriving at the ground from as early as 4 pm and some were making the long trek from remote parts of Guyana. Ticket sales for the match was robust and a full house was expected. With the Amazon Warriors based in Guyana the interest amongst the fans is tremendous. The scenes were unlike what transpired in Grenada for the opening round last weekend. No franchise is attached to Grenada and this would have resulted in small crowds there. 

Since arriving in Guyana on Sunday, the Amazon Warriors players, led by T&T’s Denesh Ramdin, have been aggressively marketing the tournament. The players made several appearances at sponsors outlets and this helped to create the hype. 

The cricket vibes here were similar to the World Cup football that just ended. Even the radio talk show hosts were going at it, with one remarking that the Guyana Amazon Warriors would: “Teach those Trinis a lesson in cricket.”

He probably did not know that four men on the Amazon Warriors team are from T&T, including the captain. However it was just all part of the fun and interest shown in the tournament.

A fan from Charity in Essequibo, reached the ground at 1pm and was not allowed in until 4pm. He and his wife were however still upbeat as they entered. He told the T&T Guardian: “This is the best thing right now for cricket here. With all the problems we have in cricket administration in Guyana, we needed to see cricket and I am glad that the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) is not interfering with this cricket. We are going to see a great game, we love cricket here in Guyana and we will spend our money to come and see the matches. Imagine I have to rent a room in Georgetown to stay the night, as I cannot get home until tomorrow after this match is done.” (VM)

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